


Dans l'éternité (in eternity)

by midnightmumblings



Series: SB19 Future!AU [1]
Category: SB19 (Band)
Genre: And my sanity, Engineer!Josh, I'm going to wildly vacillate between my AU on twit and this one, M/M, Monthsary Special for Double J, Pray for me, Rating May Change, Slow Updates, This was supposed to be finished in time for the Monthsary but work got in the way, Time Police!Justin, and I mean SLOW updates, and I started a new AU on twitter, future!Au, inaccurate science
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:53:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 45,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23964955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/midnightmumblings/pseuds/midnightmumblings
Summary: Josh accidentally travels 1000 years into the future.  It is now 3020, and the world, as he knows it, has changed drastically.
Relationships: Josh Cullen Santos/Justin De Dios, Stellvester Ajero/Felip Jhon "Ken" Suson
Series: SB19 Future!AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1983553
Comments: 36
Kudos: 100





	1. I've been to the Year 3000

**Author's Note:**

> Happy 7th Monthsary to @JnJ_Official, the very first fanbase for SB19's Josh and SB19's Justin
> 
> Here's my 7th Motmot gift to you! It's not complete, but rest assured I will be updating it on a very, very, very slow basis because work and shit.
> 
> Anywho, enjoy! If such content bothers you, please don't just read. 
> 
> Stan SB19!
> 
> Just for clarification moving forward:
> 
> "Jus" is Justin  
> "Keane" is Ken  
> "Vestell" is Stell
> 
> Sejun will remain as is.

In hindsight, Josh really should have listened to Sejun when the other man warned him about testing experimental equipment on himself. Sejun has warned him countless times about the lab rules, even going so far as printing them on a large tarpaulin that hangs on the wall in their shared workspace.

By nature, Josh was inquisitive and curious. Add to that his above genius IQ, it was damn near impossible for him not to fiddle with electronics and equipment even if he didn’t fully know what they could do.

Also, he should have heeded the warning sign on the large contraption. SBT corporation has been working on a so-called “time jump” in secrecy, something only Alpha level engineers had access to. Josh only became aware of the project when he overheard some of the douchebags at Alpha level talk about it over lunch.

So of course, he tried telling Sejun, but he barely got one word out when Sejun put a stop to his plans.

“Whatever you’re thinking Josh, the answer is no.” 

“Oh come on, you haven’t even heard about it!”

Sejun rolled his eyes as he packed up his workbench. “I don’t need to hear about it. Whatever it is, it’s a bad idea, and I’m saying no.”

So, yeah, Sejun was a killjoy, but Josh really should have listened.

The thing was, he didn’t.

Getting into the Alpha-level lab was a walk in the park. His nimble fingers allowed him to nick the security card of one of the engineers. It was also very easy to walk around the building unnoticed - he had, of course, memorized every single location of the CCTV - so sneaking in past hours was so easy, it was almost pathetic.

And then, Josh was face to face with a ridiculously large machine. A quick glance at the haphazardly placed blueprints told him this was the “time jump” that the alpha level engineers couldn’t stop talking about amongst themselves even if it was supposed to be a big-ass company secret.

Really, some people just couldn’t keep their mouths shut.

Josh picked up the blueprints, studying the make of the machine, and what he saw floored him greatly. It was unlike anything he’s ever worked on before. The intricate circuits of machinery and code danced before him, and he was mesmerized at the absolute beauty of the design. Whoever did it knew what he was doing, and Josh aspired to be that level of extra whenever he inevitably reaches alpha-level clearance.

He walked towards the machine, examining its parts carefully. The sheer power running through it caused the hairs on his body to rise. Josh took a deep breath, before stepping inside the machine.

He barely got inside when alarm bells started ringing. 

“Oh shit,” Josh muttered. Red lights flashed around him, and he could hear footsteps approaching. 

“Who’s there?!” Came the gruff voice of security. Josh held his breath, pressing himself flat against the wall of the machine. The less noise he makes, the less likely he’ll be discovered.

The footsteps approached, and Josh shrunk further into himself.

“Show yourself immediately!”

_Yeah, no,_ Josh thought to himself, shuffling further inside. 

He plastered himself against the wall when his back hit a switch.

Josh barely had time to react - barely had time to scream really - before he was enveloped in a blinding white light that obscured his vision. The sensation was unlike anything he’s ever felt before. It was like something was tugging him through a very small hole, squeezing him through forcefully. He could only just make out the panicked screams outside, but they seemed so faint...as if they were far away.

Really, the last thought he had before he blacked out completely was _Sejun is going to be so pissed._

***

**[Undisclosed location, 22:47 pm]**

Report

What: Sensors picked up an unknown surge of energy coming from the old SBT corporation building

When: 3 May 3020, approximately 22:30 pm

Time Police sent to investigate. 

Special ops commander JDD called in for extraction.

***

When Josh came to, the first thing he realized was that he had a massive headache that threatened to split his skull in two. 

The next thing he realized was that he was still inside the machine, but darkness enveloped him this time, a stark contrast to the bright lights and electrical surges he saw when he first stepped in. 

“What the fuck,” he breathed out as he tried to sit up. The dust around him settled, and he blinked his eyes to try and adjust to the darkness.

“Okay,” he mumbled to himself, feeling around for an exit. He was clearly still in one piece, that was certain, and he was obviously still in the machine. He felt around for the door, and he grit his teeth as he wrenched it open.

Light flooded his vision, and he was greeted with the decrepit sight of the alpha-level lab.

“Holy shit,” Josh muttered, looking around. “What the hell happened here?”

“Freeze!” Someone yelled, and Josh immediately put his hands up. Several armed men surrounded him, each carrying a gun with electricity running through the barrel. 

He broke out in a cold sweat. The men around him were wearing gear from head to toe, looking for all the world like something out of a bad sci-fi film. Across their chests, the words “TIME POLICE” were emblazoned, and Josh really wishes this was just bad cosplay, but the heat emanating from those clearly live guns was a bit too much.

“Hands in the air where we can see them!” One of them yelled, and Josh straightened up. 

“Hey, what’s going on,” he asked when the barrel of the gun was pointed directly at him. Josh promptly shut up - he was clearly out of his depth here. 

“No talking. We’ll be the ones asking questions around here,” The man ordered. “Cuff him, boys.”

“Hey, what?!” Josh yelped when some magnetic cuffs came out of nowhere and wrapped around his wrists. “Hey, man, fuck you!” Josh spat, earning him a loud smack on the face. The force caused his glasses to fly off his face, and the sound echoed throughout the room.

“We said no talking,” came the gruff voice. “This is the problem with you time jumpers - you think you’re hot shit, but trust us, nobody wants you.”

“I don’t even know what the hell you’re talking about!” Josh yelled before he was promptly gagged. 

“Take him to HQ, boys. We have ourselves a long night.”

Josh’s eyes widened in fear, and he struggled against the men holding him up, but it was no use. He tried to scream, tried to fight, anything...until something hit the back of his head and his vision promptly faded to black.

***

When Josh came to a second time, he blinked his eyes, trying to adjust to the brightness. 

“Wakey wakey, time jumper,” a voice echoed, and Josh looked up. Without his glasses, he couldn’t see shit, but he was clearly in some version of an interrogation room. 

Josh wishes the blast from the machine just knocked him out cold, and he was just having a terrible nightmare as a result of the damned coma, but everything looked and felt so real - from the chair that he was sitting on, to the overly large electronic cuffs on his wrists (and seriously, _electronic?_ If Josh weren’t too busy fearing for his life, he’d love to take these apart).

“So,” a voice sounded around the room. “What’s your business here, time jumper?”

“Look,” Josh breathed out, patience running thin. “I don’t know where the fuck I am, or what the fuck you are, but I have absolutely no fucking clue what’s going on.”

“Likely story,” came the derisive response. “That’s what you all say.”

“Because it’s true!” Josh screamed. “Let me the fuck out of here because I have no idea what’s going on. And, by the way, you’re detaining me against my will.”

“Rules are a bit different around here, and maybe if you start talking, we’ll cut you some slack.”

Josh struggled against the cuffs again, trying to feel around for a weak point, but found none. There was some weird energy flowing through the cuffs, and it was equal parts fascinating and equal parts terrifying.

“Now, tell me what you know,” the voice echoed again, and Josh was suddenly filled with dread. 

“You decide if you want to be cooperative,” it continued. “If you decide to sit down and behave, perhaps we can let you go. But, if there’s even a small chance I think you’re lying...well, the electricity in those handcuffs are not simply for display after all.”

Josh gasped when a sudden jolt of electricity travelled from the cuffs. It wasn’t too painful, but whoever was behind that sadistic voice might just crank up the pain.

“Look,” Josh began, taking a deep breath. “You have to believe me. I have no idea what you’re talking about, and I have absolutely no clue what you want from me- AHHHHH!”

He was abruptly cut off by the painful flow of electricity coming from the cuffs. The pain was unlike anything he ever felt, almost like the pain of a thousand hot knives stabbing through his skin. The moment seemed to stretch into hours, and he gasped loudly when - just as sudden as it came - the electrical surges stopped.

Josh hadn’t realized he’d broken into a sweat. Here he was, still in the same clothes he wore yesterday, unable to see a goddamn thing without his glasses, and fearing for his life. 

“I warned you,” the voice replied in a sing-song manner, and if Josh weren’t tied up, he’d probably deck whoever that was. “So, will you start to cooperate, or shall I amp up the power?”

“No, please,” he almost begged. “Please I really don’t know what’s going on, I- AHHHHHHHHH!”

“Tsk tsk,” the voice mocked, though Josh could barely hear it because of his screams. “Such an insolent brat, you are. Wrong answer.”

The electrical surges then stopped again, and Josh could feel his whole body shake. Tears sprung up, and he gulped, trying not to let them see that he was about to cry. Why the hell he was being treated like some terrorist, he had no idea. 

“Again, will you start to cooperate?”

“Please,” Josh whispered almost brokenly. “Please...I really don’t…”

“That’s enough,” a different voice said, and Josh looked up. 

“C-commander!” Came the response. “I didn’t know they called you in.”

There was a palpable silence before the newcomer spoke up again. “They always call me in for cases like this, Captain Romero. I believe I can take it from here.”

“But, commander, I was just about to break him!”

There was a chuckle. “I’m sure you were, Captain. Thank you for your time, but I believe I can take over from here. Leave us!”

The newcomer’s voice was strong. It didn’t waver, and it came clearly through the speakers despite the slight warbling of the microphone. This commander clearly had command of the room.

“But, commander - “

“I said leave us, Romero.” The commander snapped, and Josh could feel the anger in his voice. “Or do you not believe me when I said I can take care of this? I want everyone in this room to leave us.”

Silence followed, before the captain responded. “Of course,” he bit out through what seemed to be gritted teeth. “We’ll leave you to it, commander. Thank you.”

The ensuing quiet that followed had Josh’s nerves on high alert. The moment seemed to stretch on for hours, and with every second that ticked by, Josh could feel his impending death approaching.

All of a sudden, the lights in the room dimmed. Josh blinked, his eyes adjusting to the sudden but soothing darkness. It wasn’t completely dark - just a few overhead lights were on, but it gave his eyes the rest they needed.

A loud whooshing sound then followed, and Josh looked up to see who had walked in.

His vision was still shit, and he could barely make out what the man looked like. All he could see was a tall person who sported stark, white hair. The man remained standing by the door, and Josh waited with bated breath to see what he would do.

He watched as this guy reached for some panel on the wall and typed in a few digits. Almost immediately, the panels on the ceiling moved, and Josh watched in fascination as it seemed to close around them.

“Privacy panels,” the guy said at Josh’s questioning stare. “So that no one can hear or see us. It’s a nifty addition to the room.”

Josh immediately started to panic. Were the privacy panels put in place so no one can hear him scream when he was inevitably disemboweled? He struggled against his cuffs, but there was no use - they were locked tightly, and he could almost feel the chafing on his wrists.

The man then sat down in front of him and reached out. With surprising gentleness, he entered an indecipherable code in the control panel of the cuffs, and almost immediately, Josh’s hands were freed.

“Nasty things,” the man commented, gesturing to the handcuffs. “I’m not sure why my juniors love using these cuffs often, but I would like to apologize on behalf of their…” he trailed off, as if trying to come up with the right word.

“Dickishness?” Josh offered, earning him a small smile from the other man.

“I believe you dropped these back in the warehouse,” the man said, placing something wiry on the table. Josh immediately recognized his glasses.

“Well, I didn’t really drop them...more like someone smacked the living shit out of me that they flew off my face.”

“That’s a more likely story,” the man responded, and Josh chuckled before reaching out and putting on his glasses.

And his breath was promptly stolen by the gorgeous man that sat before him.

His hair was definitely a stark white, which suited his somewhat baby-faced features. With his vision back, he could now clearly see the white and blue circuits that encircled half of the man’s face, travelling down to his neck. One of his eyes was a bright, electric blue, while the other remained a deep, rich brown. 

His sudden silence was probably mistaken for fear because Jack Frost started talking again. “Relax,” he said as he pushed the cuffs away. “I’m not going to hurt you. I figured you’d had enough of that already.”

“No shit, you think so?” Josh replied sarcastically before he could stop himself. He looked up in fear, but thankfully, the guy just gave him a smile

“My name is Commander JDD. I’m a special operative agent of this division. You may call me Jus.”

Josh nodded, and he worried his lower lip before he responded. “My name is Josh.”

“I know,” came the response. At Josh’s surprised look, Jus hastily added: “It was written on the identification cards that were in your pocket.”

Josh nodded, before he took a deep breath. “Listen, I don’t suppose you can tell me where the hell I am and what the hell is going on.”

Jus sighed, rubbing his temples. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

“Try me,” Josh challenged, crossing his arms. “I’ve been held against my will and interrogated for no apparent reason. I think I deserve some explanation.”

“You do,” Jus agreed. “But at this stage, I don’t think it would be wise for me to overwhelm you with information.”

“Well, then,” Josh leaned back, chuckling humorlessly. “So I have no idea where I am, I’m completely out of my depth here, and I’m being accused of something I didn’t do because I know for a fact that I have a moderately squeaky clean record. I haven’t had the best time in the last 24 hours, _commander,_ so I would appreciate it if you could tell me what the hell is going on.”

Jus looked pained, but he glanced around him before he made eye contact with Josh. If Josh weren’t too pissed, he’d probably melt at the steady gaze.

“Then let’s get you cleaned up and settled first. I’m about to drop a massive bombshell, so it’s best we do this when you’ve had time to recover. Come with me.” 

Jus then stood up, and Josh really wanted to appreciate the way his body filled in that bomb ass outfit, but he was dirty, and angry, and very annoyed, so he’ll have to leave the thirsting for later.

“Let’s go,” Jus said, and Josh stood up on shaky legs. “Let’s get you somewhere safe to clean up. You look like you could use a long hot shower.”

“My man, with the day I’ve had, I deserve a bath.” Josh grumbled, but he followed Jus nonetheless out of the room.

***

“So, are you ever going to tell me where I am?” Josh asked. He had gotten showered, and Jus lent him some clothes. They were a little too big on him, but it was better than being stuck with the dirty jeans and shirt he had been wearing previously. 

“Right now, you’re in my place,” Jus replied. “I have direct access to the department from my home, and it’s one of the perks of being the commander.”

“That’s cool and all,” Josh replied, taking a seat. “But that wasn’t my question.”

Jus took a deep breath, and Josh could see that he was glancing at the window constantly. 

“Well, the easy answer is you’re still in Metro Manila but...some time has passed since the city you knew.”

“So, what the fuck does that mean?” Josh asked, crossing his arms. 

Jus bit his lip before he stood up and walked over to the window. “It’s best I show you.”

Jus then reached above the window, pressing a button to lift the blinds. Josh would marvel at that feat of engineering if he wasn’t too shocked at the sight outside.

It looked like some sci-fi version of Metro Manila. Flying cars zoomed past each other, and the infrastructure seemed to have quadrupled. Bright lights flashed everywhere, and it was like Josh was looking into some weird futuristic version of the city that he only read about in science magazines and novels. 

It was a future only he could dream about. The Metro Manila he knew was leagues away from this sight. It looked like a massive improvement, that’s for damn sure, but there were barely any traces left of the city he was familiar with. It was like he was completely transported into another dimension. He tried to control his breathing, but panic was rising within him because what the hell had he gotten himself into this time?

“What the fuck,” he breathed out, taking a step back and trying to get his breathing back in control. “What’s all this?” 

“Welcome to Metro Manila,” Jus began. “In the year 3020.”

Josh’s head whipped to Jus, eyes wide. “I’m sorry, did I hear that right?”

“Unfortunately so,” Jus replied, pressing the button again to close the blinds. “A thousand years have passed. We’re in a new era.”

Josh had no idea what his reaction was supposed to be, but he figured passing out wasn’t one of them.

The last thing he remembered before he completely blacked out was the feel of arms encircling around him, breaking his fall.

***

Josh blinked his eyes open. He still had a pounding headache - nothing a little cup of coffee wouldn’t be able to fix - and his mouth felt dry. 

_That was a weird fucking dream,_ he though to himself as he felt around for his blanket. His eyes snapped open when instead of grabbing the thread-bare cloth he called a blanket, he had wrapped his fingers around a satin sheet that had more thread count than all of his bedding combined.

Now that he thought about it, he wasn’t even in his apartment. He slowly sat up, and the events of last night slowly came crashing down.

“So...this is all real, huh?”

“I’m afraid so,” came the response, and Josh turned to see Jus walk out of what looked like the kitchen, wearing nothing but cotton joggers. “Apologies if it overwhelmed you, but I wasn’t expecting you to pass out. Breakfast?”

“I’m really in the future?” Josh asked, confusion painted on his face. “So all that shit about _time jumpers…”_

“Time jumpers are what we call people that decide to play with the natural order of things by going back and forth through time,” Jus explained as he set down some plates on the table. “Time travel is highly illegal, so our job is to capture errant individuals who try and change the future.”

Josh approached, hesitantly taking a seat. “So...why are you helping me if I’m a so-called _time jumper?”_

“My investigation of the incident that led you to us revealed it was an accident,” Jus responded, gesturing to the food in front of them, inviting Josh to get some. “You didn’t intend to travel through space and time. If you had, you would have left the building before we could arrive.”

“I didn’t even have time to escape,” Josh muttered, stabbing a fork at what looked like eggs. 

“Most time jumpers I deal with are quick on their feet, and are very unapologetic about it. There’s a certain thrill with going through time and changing things, and they keep jumping through time again and again just to see what else they can change” Jus pointed out. “On the other hand, you were scared shitless.”

“Gee,” Josh replied sarcastically. “Thanks.”

They ate in silence for a few minutes. The food was still food, and while it wasn’t something Josh was used to, it was edible and filling, something he needed after the last twenty four hours.

“But seriously, thanks for helping out.” Josh then said. “I appreciate it.”

“No worries,” Jus replied with a smile. “But, unfortunately, we’re not in the clear yet. There’s still the matter of getting you back to your own time, and keeping the other time police off your trail. What I did wasn’t exactly according to protocol.”

“Okay, this is all too much to deal with,” Josh remarked. 

“I can imagine,” Jus replied. “I’m sorry that you have to deal with all of this, but my priority is getting you back, and as ironic as it sounds, we do not have the luxury of time on our hands.”

“Yeah...I figured,” Josh replied. “So...where do we go from here?” He asked.

“I know some people who can help us. Let’s finish eating, and we’ll go.”

There was something about the tone of Jus’ voice that left no room for arguing, so Josh obediently tucked back into his food.

He surely needed the energy for what lay ahead.

***

**[Incoming Message from: JDD]**

**JDD:** Are you there?

**FJS:** For you, always.

**JDD:** Good. I’m coming by to visit.

**JDD:** And I have a guest.

**FJS:** Business or pleasure?

**JDD:** Bring out the good scotch.

**FJS:** See you in ten?

**JDD:** Affirmative.

***

“Was the disguise really necessary?”

“Do you want to stick out like a sore thumb?”

“I’m just saying,” Josh pointed out, gesturing at the outfit that Jus had lent him. “This doesn’t exactly scream subtle.”

“I’ll have you know that what you’re wearing is the latest outfit that’s trending nowadays,” Jus retorted. “Consider yourself lucky, I haven’t even had the chance to wear that even if I bought it for myself.”

The outfit in question was an all-black, sleeveless ensemble that revealed Josh’s arms. He wasn’t skinny by any means - all that engineering work meant lugging around heavy machinery - but that didn’t mean he was comfortable in displaying them for the world.

Jus had also lent him a pair of black boots that were apparently the hottest thing this season. Jus had explained that those boots were limited edition, so he had begged Josh to take care of them.

“So, where exactly are we headed?” Josh asked, though his eyes were still glued to the sights around them. The developments made since his time (and that was very weird to think about) were massive. These were feats of engineering he could only dream about, and they were a gorgeous sight.

“We’re visiting a very close friend of mine. They should be able to help us.” Jus replied as he maneuvered their vehicle around and parked it in front of a modest looking home. Josh still couldn’t get over the fact that there were flying cars now, and Jus casually just drove one.

When all this was over, Josh would promptly freak out and nerd about everything he’s seen, but for now, he’ll need to focus.

“Here we are,” Jus huffed. He pressed the doorbell, and Josh watched as a holographic keypad, a small microphone, and retina scanner popped out. Jus went through the whole security check in less than a minute, and before them, the gate automatically opened.

“Well, well, well,” a deep voice spoke from the doorstep, and Josh looked up to see a fairly handsome man. Seriously, were people from this timeline all hot as hell?

“Keane,” Jus greeted, pulling the other man into an enthusiastic hug. “Thanks for seeing us on such short notice.”

“No prob. I gathered from your message that things were not alright. Don’t tell me the force fucked up again on my day off.” Keane replied with a grin.

“Romero nearly did,” Jus scoffed. “I had to step in. Anyways, can we come in? There’s some things we need to talk about.”

Keane stepped aside, allowing Jus and Josh into his home.

“Is Vestell here?” Jus asked as he looked around. Josh stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, unsure of where to sit or what to touch.

Keane nodded. “He’s in his lair, as usual. I’ll call him. Hey, sweetheart, we got guests here!”

And with that, Keane disappeared into a hallway that Josh hadn’t seen before, footsteps fading in the distance.

“Let’s wait here for Vestell,” Jus said, taking a seat on the normal looking couch. 

“So, is Vestell Keane’s wife?”

Jus chuckled. “Actually, Vestell is Keane’s -”

“JUS!” A loud voice exclaimed, and Josh looked up to see another man enter the room with his hair in disarray and his lab coat burned in a few sections. “What a lovely surprise!”

“-husband,” Jus finished before he stood up and pulled Vestell into a hug. “It’s good to see you, too.”

Josh watched the interaction, jaw slack. Sure enough, Keane walked up behind Vestell, hooking his chin on the other man’s shoulder and wrapping his arms around his waist. Vestell then turned his head to give Keane a soft kiss.

“Are you alright?” Jus asked him, eyebrows furrowed in confusion when he realized that Josh hadn’t spoken a word.

“Yeah,” Josh shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. “Sorry, I was just surprised. I didn’t realize that…”

“Oh, right,” Jus paused, as if wondering what to say next. “Well, a lot has changed. Society itself has changed,” Jus added. “I’ll explain later, promise.”

“I’ll hold on to that promise.” 

“So, anyways,” Vestell started talking, still in Keane’s arms who doesn’t seem to be willing to let go. “To what do we owe the pleasure of this visit?”

Jus stood up. “I actually need to talk to you, Ves. It’s a matter of utmost importance.”

Vestell’s smile fell, and he slowly wrenched Keane’s arms off him. “Well, of course. What can I help you with?”

Jus bit his lip, looking at Vestell before turning back to Josh. “Well...could we talk in private? There’s a couple of really big favors that I’m going to need.”

“Of course,” Vestell nodded. “We can talk in my lab.”

“Do you need me there?” Keane asked, and Jus nodded.

“Yes, please.” 

“So, what about me?” Josh asked from his position on the couch. “I mean, this whole thing is about me right, so don’t I have a say?”

Jus looked at him, looking torn between asking Josh to come with them or stay where he was. He walked towards Josh, an apologetic look on his face as he lowered his voice to a murmur.

“Vestell and Keane do not know where you are from yet. It’s best I brief them first on what’s going on because...this is all new to us as well.”

Josh pursed his lips, annoyance on his features as he crossed his arms. “Fine, but I deserve answers.”

“I assure you, as soon as I iron out all the details, I’ll let you know.”

And with that, Jus turned on his heel and walked back to Keane and Vestell who were apparently watching the entire exchange. 

“Let’s go?” Jus beckoned them along, and they nodded, both sparing one last look at Josh before they disappeared into the adjacent hall.

Josh sighed as he plopped down on the couch. Here he was, a thousand years away from home, not knowing how he can find his way back, unless Jus can magic something for him.

He was, for a lack of better term, fucked. 

***

“So, what’s up?” Vestell asked once they were safely tucked away in his lab. Jus didn’t reply right away. Instead, he pulled up the live feed from the living room which revealed Josh plopped on the couch.

“Okay,” Jus then breathed out, turning back to Keane and Vestell. “Firstly, I need your word that everything we speak about here will remain between us.”

Vestell and Keane looked at each other. If Jus was asking for a vow of silence, then it was definitely something serious.

“You know you can count on me,” Keane responded. Vestell nodded.

“You have my word, Jus.”

Jus breathed out, glancing once at the live feed before turning back to his friends. 

“Okay, here goes,” he paused, trying to find the right words to say. “Josh isn’t...exactly from our time.”

The ensuing silence stretched out longer than Jus would have liked. Keane and Vestell had identical looks of confusion as the weight behind Jus’ words seemed to drop.

“Wait,” Vestell was the first to speak. “Are you saying that…?”

Jus slowly nodded. “Yes.”

“Are you crazy, Jus?” Keane exploded. “You brought a time jumper here? For fuck’s sake!”

“Look, he’s not like the other time jumpers I’ve encountered. This case is different.”

Keane rolled his eyes. “Just because he’s cute doesn’t mean you can smuggle him away from the department.”

“Fuck you,” Jus spat. “I didn’t smuggle him away because he’s cute. He’s completely out of his depth here, Keane. Poor thing doesn’t know where he is.”

“You do realize you just broke about ten layers of protocol with this,” Keane pointed out in frustration. “What the hell were you thinking, Jus?”

“Well, I was thinking we should get him back to his own time.” Jus grit back. 

“What the hell for? So he can wreak more havoc?”

Jus rubbed his face. “Does that look like someone who wants to fuck up the timeline?” He asked, pointing to the man in the live feed who had gotten up and was now examining the pictures on the wall. 

“Okay, calm down both of you,” Vestell spoke up, getting in between Jus and Keane. “Jus, I’m sure you have a perfectly rational explanation for all of this.”

“I do,” Jus responded. “The reason I’m telling you this is because I need your help. We need to send him back, and Vestell, you are the expert in time manipulation.”

Vestell took a step back. “I’m sorry, did I hear that right?”

“Please,” Jus whispered almost brokenly, looking between Keane and Vestell. “You’re the only people I can trust to help me with this.”

Vestell started to laugh hysterically, voice echoing throughout the lab. “Why me? Jus, you do realize what you’re asking is all kinds of illegal. And besides, we don’t have the resources to…” he trailed off, shaking his head. “Jus, this is a huge thing to ask for.”

“You’re asking us to risk the ire of the Time Police, a force which we are a part of, Jus, just to remind you, so you can send some chump back in time?” Keane quipped sarcastically. 

“Please, Vestell,” Jus pleaded. “It’s our very existence at stake here if we don’t send him back soon.”

“Why, who is he?” Vestell asked, looking back at the live feed.

“Oh come on, don’t tell me you don’t recognize that face,” Jus pointed out, zooming in on the holographic live feed. 

“I really don’t,” Vestell muttered, looking at the feed. 

Jus growled in frustration, pulling up a search feature next to the live feed. “You should know him, Vestell. After all, you couldn’t stop talking about him throughout college. You wrote a whole fucking dissertation on his works.”

Jus watched in real time as the penny finally dropped, and Vestell nearly fell backwards.

“Wait, are you...saying he’s…?” Vestell asked weakly, looking between Jus, Keane, and the live feed.

“I’m afraid so,” Jus replied solemnly.

“Well, how sure are you?” Keane asked.

“Identification cards confirmed it. It’s him. He looks twenty years younger, but it’s him.”

The search feature beeped, and as one, they turned to the result.

There, on the screen, Josh’s face appeared, looking older at around 50 years old. Below him, the title said:

****

**Dr. Josh Cullen Santos  
MEng, MMath, PhD, D.Eng  
Founder**

“Holy fucking shit,” Keane breathed out when the gravity of the situation hit him.

“Yeah,” Jus muttered. “Holy fucking shit indeed.”


	2. Our future love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vestell and Josh discuss time travel. Jus and Keane figure out how to stay undetected. Josh and Jus share a moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, and welcome back! I've been so excited to update this, so I hope you all enjoy.
> 
> Just a word of caution, I have absolutely no idea if the science behind this is accurate. I am not a scientist, and I just did a bit of research on time travel and paradoxes and all that, but it was ultimately too difficult for me to actually comprehend because I am a pea-brained whiny bitch baby. Most discussion of time travel is based on the movies that focus on the topic, and I've chosen to stick with the tried and tested formula. 
> 
> If anyone would like to discuss this with me, I'd appreciate it. I mean, I'm not claiming to be a scientist in any way, and constructive criticism is always welcome. 
> 
> Also, this is a work of fiction. Please don't take this seriously.
> 
> Enjoy all, and stan SB19.

Josh looked up when the door opened with a soft whooshing sound. Jus stepped out, a frown on his handsome face. Behind him, Keane’s eyebrows were knitted together, forehead scrunched in clear frustration. 

Only Vestell had a pensive look about him, and Josh could recognise the look as someone having a brainstorm. He’s seen that look on Sejun before when his fellow engineer would get so involved in a project that he was working on, and Josh is certain he’s done it as well.

He felt a twist in his chest at that thought. What if he could never get home? Sejun would probably be wondering where the hell he was, and he wouldn’t have any answers. Josh had family and friends he left behind - what would happen to them?

He needed to get back, he realized with a start, and he needed to cooperate with Jus to do that.

“Okay,” Jus took a deep breath, and Josh turned to him. “We’ve spoken. It’s going to take a lot of work to get you back to your own time. There’s a lot of rules we’ll be breaking here in doing this.”

Josh nodded, still overwhelmed by all the information, but trying his best to at least catch up. “So, what do we do?”

Jus turned to Keane, who crossed his arms. “Well, Jus and I will go to the department. If we’re going to do this, it means not letting the Time Police actually catch on with what we’re doing because we could go to jail for this.”

“Oh shit, are you serious?” Josh exclaimed. 

“Dead serious,” Jus nodded solemnly. “It’s going to hurt a lot more for me as I’m the commander of the special ops team. If Romero finds out…” he trailed off with a humorless chuckle.

Jus then turned to look at Josh. “In the meantime, you can stay here with Vestell and come up with ideas.”

Vestell nodded. “While I may be an expert on time manipulation - and I’ve done quite a bit of research if I do say so myself - it’s not something I’ve actually achieved on a scale that you're asking me to do. If I may, I’d love to pick at your brain for ideas as well.”

“I’m not familiar with the technology of this time,” Josh replied, dumbfounded. “The things you have are lightyears away from what I know.”

Vestell shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You’re an engineer, yes? A scientist?”

At Josh’s nod, Vestell continued. “Then that is enough. I would love a second perspective. Lord knows I can’t talk to Keane about this.”

Keane stuck his tongue out at Vestell, but there was fondness on his face as he did so. 

“Well, we’re burning daylight,” Jus said, and Josh watched, fascinated, as he pressed a button on his wrist and almost immediately, his clothes transformed into a dark suit, tight enough to hug him in all the right places. 

_Okay, Josh, now is not the time to have gay thoughts, calm the fuck down,_ Josh hissed at himself as he watched Jus subtly flex in the suit with “TP” printed on the back.

“You know, I’ll never get tired of you wearing that suit,” Vestell commented with a grin, and Josh turned to see that Keane had also changed. Keane also looked good, but there was just something about Jus’ appeal that made Josh turn back to stare at him.

“Alright, we’ll be back as soon as we can,” Jus said as Keane kissed Vestell goodbye. “If you need me, Vestell knows how to get in touch with us.”

“Sure,” Josh nodded, and Jus smiled at him.

Not gonna lie, it made Josh feel a bit weak in the knees. 

And with that, Jus and Keane stepped out the door which closed automatically behind them. 

"So…" Vestell breathed out, and Josh noticed he had somewhat of an uneasy smile. 

"Yes?" 

"Let's talk about time travel."

***

"So, where do we begin?" Josh asked once Vestell opened up his private library to him. It looked like an ordinary room filled with books - a stark contrast to the rest of the technologically advanced home - but then Vestell grabbed a book from the shelves, and a holographic screen opened up. 

Vestell smiled at the wonder on Josh's face. "I presume such technology has yet to exist in your time."

"You got that right," Josh murmured, eyes still on the screen. It was a marvel, and he itched to break it down to its barest codes. 

"The first thing you have to understand is that the literature regarding time travel is…scarce, for a lack of a better term. I have done extensive research, but the information about it is quite confidential." Vestell explained as he set the book down and used his fingers to expand the screens. Josh gasped as the hologram enveloped them. 

"So what, is this like Google?" 

"Google?" Vestell asked, turning to him. 

"You know, the search engine?" 

A look of understanding dawned on Vestell's face. "I am not familiar, but we call this PAUS - Personal Assistive Updated Software. It's a search engine keyed to us only. Very private, and unsearchable to anyone who dares try to spy on search histories. It gives access to the worldwide interface, but it's simply coded only to us for security."

"That is fascinating," Josh breathed out. 

"I can only imagine the shock you're experiencing right now," Vestell said with a chuckle. "Imagine missing a thousand years of technological advancement. The world has changed indeed."

Vestell typed a few things into PAUS and a flood of information filled the screen. Josh's mouth fell open at the sight. 

"That's _scarce_ literature?" 

"It is if you remove the results from conspiracy theorists and dummy sites.” 

Vestell paused the search with a flick of his wrist before turning back to Josh. " So, what do you know about time travel?"

"I've never really studied the concept to be honest. I wasn't aware it was possible until I overheard some engineers talk about it. My knowledge consists mostly of movie references," Josh said. 

"That's a good start. Let's first clear out some misconceptions about it." Vestell tapped on a result. "Time travel is a bit complex. Imagine time moving in a linear fashion - everything we do at a certain point causes a chain reaction and determines the future. Have you heard of the Butterfly Effect?" 

"Yeah...flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway across the world?" Josh replied, and Vestell smiled at him.

"I'm surprised you remember the exact quote, but yes, the butterfly effect: the smallest or most minute choices we make can have an effect on the future.”

Josh paused. “That’s pretty consistent with most films I’ve seen.”

Vestell nodded. “There is some grain of truth in those old films. That’s the easiest way to explain it. Even if you consider yourself to be a minute person in the grand scheme of things, in this entire universe, your presence affects the lives of millions of people. So, time is a really tricky thing to study.”

“Am I really that important?” Josh suddenly asked, causing Vestell to look up at him. “I mean...I’m just me. I’m Josh, an engineer. I’m not much.”

Vestell regarded him carefully. “You matter more than you’ll ever realize.”

There was some weight to those words. Vestell then turned back to scroll through PAUS, but Josh was still reeling from the statement.

The engineer took a deep breath, rubbing at his eyes. “Okay, so how do we start with taking me back?”

“Well, first things first, we need to be able to plot the exact time and location you were taken from." said Vestell. "It is of utmost importance that we bring you back to the exact moment, not a second more, and not a second less.” 

Josh nodded, still trying his hardest to wrap his head around the information provided. 

“So, how do we do that exactly?” He asked, his voice rising in pitch. He may be a genius according to his IQ test, but the technology he’s dealing with his miles away from what he’s familiar with. 

Vestell flicked his finger and a whole slew of data appeared on the screen. He seemed to be speed reading because Josh could barely keep up with the flood of information, but Vestell seemed unbothered, only pausing here and there to skim through. 

"We could start by establishing a point of contact in your time. If they can figure out when you were taken, with your help, then we can begin plotting." Vestell then turned PAUS to Josh. "If we're going to do this, I will need information about the modes of communication in your time." 

Josh grinned. "That I can do."

***

"If we're going to do this, we need to stay away from the sensors." Keane said once they were safe inside Jus' office. Jus walked over to the control panel on the far left wall and opened it up. 

"The thing is, there's sensors everywhere." Jus remarked as the map of Metro Manila expanded to reveal red hotspots dotted around. He rubbed his face, glancing up at the map, before turning back to Keane. "If Romero finds out about this, that greasy fucker's gonna have a fuckin' field day. He's been dropping hints about being commander for months now. One slip up and he'd finally have that leverage over me."

Keane scrunched his nose up in disgust. "I'd rather shoot myself than work for Romero."

Jus chuckled, expanding the map as he did so to include not only Metro Manila but the entire island of Luzon. 

"There." Keane pointed to a black spot on the map. "Black means no sensors, correct?" 

Jus squinted at the map. "That's the site where they will set up the new ones. We only have a small window of time if we're going to do this." 

"Sensors only pick up energy surges right?" Keane asked. "What if we mask the energy surge from the time jump with another energy surge?"

Jus shook his head. "That wouldn't work. Time jumps involve a lot of power. To replicate something like that to fool the sensors would be impossible unless it was another time jump."

"So we're basically fucked either way?" 

"Not necessarily," Jus replied as he zoomed in on the map. "What if we disable the sensors?" 

"That will trigger the backup power immediately and alarm the force that someone's been tampering," Keane replied. "We'd be caught faster than you can say your name."

"Shit."

"Big shit."

"We can ask Vestell what he thinks," Jus said after a moment of silence. "I'll link up my PAUS to the interface so we can access the data even if we're far away from the department."

"Good idea," Keane commented. 

Jus reached his fist forward to reveal a golden watch around his wrist. Wires snaked out of the interface, and a progress bar appeared on the screen.

"By the way," Keane asked as he moved around. "Didn't anyone wonder why the time jumper disappeared when you were the last person seen with him?" 

"I lodged it as an escape act. As far as they are concerned, I put him in a holding cell and he managed to escape."

"That excuse won't hold out for long." Keane pointed out. "Romero may be dumb as shit, but he's had it out for you as long as we can remember. He'll grab on to any excuse to take you down."

"I know," Jus replied, his lips stretched out into a thin line. "That's why we need to send him back as soon as possible."

He then turned to Keane. "We'll need all the help we can get. Can I count on you?" 

Keane sighed, before he grinned. "Ride or die since the academy. Right, Jus?" 

Jus grinned back. "Ride or die."

***

"Fascinating," Vestell commented just as Josh finished explaining the features of the cellular phone. "It is amazing how advanced technology has become, and it is intriguing to see these devices used almost a thousand years ago."

"You have no idea how jarring it is to hear that this device was used a thousand years ago when this was the latest model that came out last I remember." Josh replied as he flicked through PAUS. 

"Would you know of anyone who you could trust?" Vestell asked him. "We need to establish contact."

Almost immediately, Sejun came to mind. 

"I have a friend," Josh replied. "He's an engineer as well."

"Does he have this particular mobile phone?" 

"No uh… his is an older version."

"I see. That shouldn't matter." Vestell replied with a smile. "The big problem would be reaching through time and space to establish contact. Luckily, I had been working on a prototype."

"Of what?" Josh asked. 

"A way to communicate through time," Vestell said with a grin. "It's not quite time travel, and it doesn't use so much energy that it is traceable."

"Is that even possible?

"If all conditions were met, then yes." Vestell paused before gesturing for Josh to follow him. "Let's go to my garage. My prototypes have been stashed there."

Josh followed Vestell to a separate area of the house. After a quick security check, Vestell led him to a large workshop, and it was almost reminiscent of Josh's own workspace. 

"Come along, then." 

Josh approached Vestell who pulled out a device. He blew off some dust from it before turning to Josh. 

"This is a small device that can actually help you communicate with others in the past," Vestell explained. "In my studies of time, I have been able to find a way that could allow anyone to communicate through time and space itself."

Josh gaped at him. "Is that even possible?" 

"The farthest I've gone in testing is 10 years back," Vestell replied with a proud smile. "But what we are attempting is a thousand years. It may take a bit more tweaking to achieve that."

Josh suddenly felt very overwhelmed. This was technology beyond his capacity to understand. What if it doesn't work? What if he never gets back home? 

If he understood anything that Vestell spewed in the last half hour was that whatever they were attempting to do would be short of impossible. A lot of factors were involved and everything would have to line up perfectly so they can get their desired results. 

One wrong move and it could all fall apart. 

And he could never get home. 

He hadn't realized he had been hyperventilating until his vision started to blur, and the last thing he remembered hearing was Vestell's panicked "JOSH!" before the world turned black. 

***

When Josh came to, the first thing he saw was Jus. The man had his back to him, and even despite the massive headache he was experiencing, he could still appreciate the shapely form of Jus, from his broad shoulders to the curve of his ass. 

Jus was no longer wearing his black TP suit. He was in a simple top and cotton joggers now, but he was still criminally hot. If Josh were being completely honest with himself, if his life wasn't in any immediate danger, he'd probably flirt with Jus to no end.

He hasn't had a steady relationship since he got his Master's degree. Sejun, bless him, keeps trying to set him up on dates, but they've never worked out. 

But now, here was Jus. His mere presence commanded attention. He was gorgeous, there was no denying it. 

Also, the circuits around his eyes were actually more of a turn on. Those maybe scary to some people, but Josh could definitely imagine those eyes looking up at him, probably sparking a little bit, as Jus would get on his knees and - 

"Oh good, you're awake!" came the surprised voice of Vestell from the other side of the room. 

Jus also turned around at that, and his front was even better than his backside. His hair was brushed up, revealing his forehead, and the circuits around his eyes gleamed. Almost immediately, he was by Josh's side, checking him over.

"Uhhh…" Josh muttered as he stared at Jus' neck. 

"We came as soon as we could. Vestell called in a panic saying you passed out." Jus said, looking over at Josh for any bumps and bruises. 

He was incredibly close, Josh realized with a jolt. From this position, Josh could see the faint outline of the circuits around Jus' left eye. It trailed down his neck all the way down to his arm. Josh wondered what that was about, but he was immediately distracted by the way Jus ran his fingers through his hair. 

"Are you feeling okay?" Jus asked. 

Josh let out a soft noise. "I am."

"Good." Jus murmured. "You had me worried."

Josh couldn't help but grin. "I feel so better now that you're here."

Behind them, there was a loud gagging noise that Josh was sure came from Keane. 

Jus grinned back nonetheless. "You might still have a few screws loose. Rest for now, and when you're better, we can begin planning."

Jus continued running his fingers through Josh's hair, and Josh hummed, feeling more relaxed. In minutes, he shut his eyes and fell back asleep.

***

Jus stepped out of the room, the door automatically closing behind him. He walked out to see Vestell and Keane smirking at him. 

"What?" He asked almost defensively. 

"You're smitten." Keane pointed out.

Jus made a face. "No I'm not."

"You are!" Vestell added, grinning widely. "I can't believe it took someone from the past to get that stone cold heart beating again."

Jus narrowed his eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Can we focus on our actual problem?" 

Vestell continued grinning. "Alright, let's talk. What have you found?" 

"Not much," Keane replied. "We linked our PAUS to the interface. We couldn't stay there for long."

"There's energy sensors everywhere." Jus added. "We need to figure out a way to accomplish this without tripping the sensors."

"We can't disable them?" Vestell asked as they moved to his lab. 

"No can do, babe." Keane replied. "We'd trip the alarm."

"We can figure that out later," Jus said as he brought up PAUS on his watch. "What have you and Josh talked about?" 

"We mostly discussed time travel. If my theory is correct, and it usually is, we must bring Josh back to the exact point in time he was taken. If we do this right, nothing will change in our present, and the world will continue spinning." Vestell said. "But to do that, we need to establish contact with someone from his timeline so we can figure out the exact time."

"Think we can manage a thousand years?" Jus asked with a frown. "I know you've been testing this, but if the furthest you've gone is still ten years, it'll take a while. Is there no other way?" 

Vestell paused. "There are a lot of other factors we must consider. Even if we trace back the exact moment Josh appeared in our time, we do not know how long he spent in the in between. Time moves differently in the in between, so it could've been seconds or hours before he appeared here."

"Still worth a shot," Keane muttered. "Why don't we try both? Jus can investigate with Josh at the incident site. I'll stay here and be on the lookout in case some of Romero's lapdogs decide to start sniffing around again while Vestell is conducting his tests."

"Good idea I- wait…" Jus paused and turned to Keane who was doing a terrible job at a poker face. For someone who was so feared in the force, Keane was not known for being subtle. "Why exactly do I need to take Josh?" 

"Oh you know, he'll have a more concrete account of his experience." Keane replied smoothly but then he grinned. "Plus, it'll give you more time to interact with him and get to know him more. I mean, how often will you get to speak to this great city's founder?"

"He's not our city's founder yet, if you haven't realized," Jus pointed out with a glare. "Can't exactly pick at his brain for that. And besides, it would be ill-advised for me to start anything knowing we'd have to take him back."

There was a slight bitterness in his tone as he said that. 

"Well," Vestell began. "I'll start reviewing the specifications of the communicators. Keane, honey, you're welcome to keep me company in the lab. I think Jus needs some time to think."

Thankfully Keane got the hint, and he disappeared along with Vestell in the lab.

Jus sighed as he sat down and stared at the ceiling. There was so much to do, and so little time to get things done. 

He glanced at the closed door to the room where Josh was asleep. Here was the one man that impacted more than a million lives worldwide. Jus grew up learning about him and his works. Here was his hero, albeit younger, and Jus wanted nothing more than to talk to him about everything and anything. 

Jus didn't expect to become immediately attracted to him as well. 

But there was just something so adorable with Josh's wide eyed wonder every time he encounters a new piece of technology. In the two days Jus has known him, he's seen a side of his hero that he never expected he would see ever in his lifetime. 

Now, here he was, helping the man go back because failure to do so… 

Jus didn't even want to think about the consequences.

Keane was right about one thing, though. 

He was smitten. 

***

The next day dawned, and Josh woke up with a jolt. He panicked for a second before he remembered where he was. 

He sat up and looked around the room. It was sparsely decorated, no indication of whose room it was. 

He also belatedly realized that he was wearing a comfortable shirt and shorts, a far cry from the outfit Jus had lent him yesterday. He blushed in embarrassment at the thought that one of them had changed him in his sleep. 

Throwing the covers off, he stood up from the bed… 

…before tripping on the body on the floor and landing on top of him. 

"OOMPH!" The figure exclaimed, and Josh recognized the voice as Jus. 

He froze just as Jus looked up at him with squinted eyes. When the man discerned what had happened, his eyes widened and a blush crept up his neck. 

"Uh, hello," Josh said with a sheepish grin. 

Instead of berating him, Jus let out a laugh. "You're heavy."

"Excuse me?" Josh said in mock-affront. "I'll have you know that I am perfectly average."

Jus looked at him fondly. "I'm sure you are."

"Why are you on the floor?" 

"This is my room actually. This is where I sleep when I stay over here at Vestell and Keane's. I didn't want to disturb you on the bed, so I just slept here."

Josh grimaced, knocking his head against Jus' chest. "God, how embarrassing. I even displaced you from your room."

Jus chuckled. "It's quite alright. You slept like an angel…didn't want to disturb you."

Josh looked up as he smiled back, and their eyes met. He only just realized that he was incredibly close to Jus, faces mere inches away. From his vantage point, he could see the rich blue of Jus' left eye. It glowed with electricity, and Josh was incredibly intrigued with its structure.

He was also struck by how handsome Jus looked, despite the bedhead. 

Josh really was losing it. Two days into the future and he's already inappropriately thirsting over his rescue. 

Jus also had really pretty lips. They looked a little dry, nothing a little balm couldn't fix. 

Jus' hands were warm against his sides, his breath hot against Josh's lips. 

It could just be so easy to lean in. 

So Josh did. 

Jus wasn't pulling away either, and he had closed his eyes, so he took this as a sign to go ahead. 

Their lips were mere millimeters away. 

"Is this okay?" he asked. 

"Yes." whispered Jus, the word falling from his lips as if it was an answered prayer. 

All of a sudden, a loud knock echoed and Josh pulled back faster than the speed of light. 

Jus' eyes were open wide, and Josh hastily scrambled off of him. 

"Yo, Double J," Keane's voice sounded from behind the door. "Breakfast."

Josh and Jus looked at each other. 

"Yup," Jus replied to Keane in a strangled voice. "See you downstairs."

They glanced awkwardly at each other before Jus let out a small smile. 

"You can go ahead and take the shower first. I'm sure I have some clothes here that'll fit you."

"Yeah sure I'll…go…" Josh muttered awkwardly as he ducked out of the room. 

Once out of sight, Josh closed his eyes. What the fuck was he thinking? 

***

What the fuck was he thinking? 

Jus let out a sigh that he didn't know he was holding as he fixed his bed. He didn't know if he wanted to thank Keane or strangle him for interrupting. 

Still, he couldn't get the memory out of his mind. Josh's lips were almost on his, a mere breath away. Had he leaned in as well, their lips would have touched. 

This was dangerous territory he was treading. 

Would it be worth it? Josh would be back soon in his own time…far away from Jus who so obviously didn't exist then. It wouldn't be right, especially for Jus who couldn't reveal much of the future to Josh. 

But…it has been a long time since he felt anything like this. 

And he found himself oddly wanting to take Josh on a tour of the future, to let him nerd out over every single advancement they've made since then. Maybe they would hold hands, or maybe they would even kiss as his flying car would cruise around the city. 

But as a commander of the Time Police, Jus had a duty to preserve the timeline…and that meant taking Josh back to his time.

Why did that thought suddenly hurt? 

As he stepped out of the room, he ran into Josh who had just gotten out of the shower.

"I uh…have some clothes laid out on the bed that you can wear." Jus said. "If you give me your sizes, I can go out and buy you a set of clothing so you won't have to keep borrowing mine."

Josh let out a small smile at that. "Thank you, Jus."

Jus nodded as he walked past Josh. Their hands briefly brushed against each other, and there was a jolt of electricity that traveled through them. 

"I'll uh.." Josh began as he swallowed. "See you downstairs."

"Yup."

Jus was about to enter the shower before he turned back. "Hey Josh!" 

Josh looked up quickly from where he stood. 

"Whatever you do, and whatever Vestell says, do not accept any of his veggie smoothies."

Josh laughed, loud and melodious, and it immediately became one of Jus' favorite sounds.

"I'll be sure to take note of that," the engineer replied with a grin.

And yeah, maybe their paths weren't meant to cross, but Jus was swiftly falling. 

And he hated that at some point…he'll be forced to let go.

***

"Yo," Keane said as Josh walked into the kitchen. 

"Hi," Josh greeted. "Where's uh…Vestell?"

"Probably doing some mad science in his lab," Keane replied with a chuckle. "He's been in there since last night. He had an idea at 1 in the morning and promptly left me in bed all alone."

Josh could understand. He's gone on some engineering binges himself, getting so invested in a project that he'd lose track of time. Sejun had to remind him to eat and "bathe for the love of God. You're starting to smell!" 

The thought of his closest friend brought a pang to Josh's heart. He can't wait for Vestell to find a way to communicate with Sejun because not only does Josh want to go home as soon as possible, he's starting to miss his friends and family. 

"Alright, food's ready." Keane announced, and as if on cue, the lab door opened to reveal Vestell. Josh chuckled at the sight. Vestell's hair was stuck up in odd angles, and there were bags around his eyes. 

"I figured it out." Vestell muttered to no one in particular. He then locked eyes with Josh. "I need your brain, now."

"Excuse me?" Josh asked incredulously.

"Yeah, no science on an empty stomach, babe." Keane said as he pulled Vestell close to him. "You can do science later. Let's get some food into you first, hmm?" 

Vestell stared at Keane as if seeing him for the first time. "Keane…I love you."

Keane laughed. "I love you too you big nerd. Now, let's get showered, get dressed, and then let's eat."

Keane then proceeds to lead Vestell out of the room. He looked back at Josh who was watching them with an amused look on his face. 

"Hey, help yourself to anything alright? Jus should be down soon. You can start eating."

"Thanks, Keane." Josh replied as he pulled up a chair. 

Keane nodded with a grin before he and Stell disappeared upstairs. 

Josh looked around. There was a moderate spread on the table, and he picked up a bread roll, taking a bite. 

Almost immediately, he felt a bit better. Thankfully, food in this time was still familiar to Josh.

He looked up when he heard the soft padding of footsteps. Jus then entered the kitchen, hair wet, a white shirt clinging to his skin. Josh swallowed and tried to avert his gaze. 

"Hey, where are they?" Jus asked as he sat down. 

"Vestell apparently had an engineering binge."

A look of understanding crossed Jus' face. "Ah, say no more."

"So what's on the agenda for today?" Josh asked. 

"Well, you can come with me. Let's go back to the incident site and dig up clues. Vestell suggested last night that we could try going backwards. Maybe if we can pinpoint the exact moment you arrived here, we could determine when you were taken from your time." Jus explained as he buttered a bread roll. "Vestell said he'll continue with the communicator and try his luck with that."

Josh nodded as he took a bite of the bread. 

He then sighed before turning to Jus. "About this morning uh…"

Jus cut him off with a shake of his head. "It’s fine...don’t...worry about it.”

“Oh,” Josh said. “Well, I just want to apologize if I may have overstepped.”

Jus smiled at him. “It’s really okay. I’m sorry if I...may have overstepped as well.”

They sat in silence for the next few minutes. There was tension in the air, so thick that it could almost be cut with a knife. Josh then turned to Jus.

“Hey uh…” he began, and Jus looked up at him. “Do you think I’ll ever get home?”

Jus stared at him for a long time, before he nodded. 

“I promise you, that no matter what, I will get you home,” he said. “You can count on me.”

_I sure hope I can,_ Josh thought. _Otherwise, I don’t know what else I’ll do._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooh, that was a ride. You have no idea how long I slaved over this. I started to question whether I bit off more than I can chew, but I'm glad this story is coming along nicely. 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! Leave a Kudos if you did, and a comment as well. I love you already if you do.
> 
> Stan SB19!


	3. Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josh doesn't have multiple degrees for nothing, after all. Jus is also a sucker for science talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! Welcome to chapter 3 of this installment. Again, just a quick preface, I am not sure if the science in this is accurate at all. I tried what I can, and I'm also in the process of filling out any plotholes because the more I write, the more I'm spotting these pesky things. 
> 
> This is a very technology and action-packed chapter as well. I hope I don't bore you all too much with the tech talk. This is really my first time writing sci-fi on this level, so I would greatly appreciate any constructive criticism that you can give me. I am always open to talk so I can improve my writing.
> 
> Also, this is an advanced gift to someone! I planned to update this on his birthday, but I figured now would be a good time as any. He has another one anyways coming up so stay tuned for that ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> Love you all! Stan SB19.

They were just finishing breakfast when Keane and Vestell walked back down the steps. Vestell looked much better this time around, though the bags under his eyes were quite pronounced still.

"So, Jus, you'll go back to the incident site?" Keane asked as he poured himself some coffee.

"Yes," came the response. Jus then turned to Josh who looked back questioningly. "I need you to come with me."

"Me?" Josh asked incredulously. "I mean, sure, but I'm not sure how much help I can be."

"Maybe you can tell me exactly what happened between leaving your time and arriving here," Jus pointed out. "We could also do a quick sweep through and see if there's any clues Vestell can use to plot the time as exact as possible."

"An approximation will be a good start," Vestell added as he prepared a plate for himself. "We'll try to work our way back. It's a good plan B if any."

"Have you had any luck with the communicator?" Josh asked. Vestell nodded.

"I've had an idea since this morning. When you and Jus come back, I need to talk to you and see if this will be at all feasible." Vestell replied.

Jus then stood up, grabbing Josh's attention. "I'll just get suited up, and we'll go. You ready, Josh?"

"I guess." Josh replied with a sigh. "I suppose I have no choice, do I?"

***

"You have to teach me how to drive one of these things," Josh later said as they flew above the metropolis.

"Well, when the space-time continuum is not in any apparent danger, maybe I'll give you a few lessons," Jus replied as he navigated smoothly between buildings.

Josh sat back in the front seat, staring out at the wonderful sight of the city around him. It was beautiful - a thousand years of advancement was a good look on Metro Manila - and he's had this vision for a while now.

He became an engineer, not only because he loved machines and technology, but also because he wanted to contribute to a better future for his country.

"So," Josh began, and Jus glanced at him briefly in acknowledgement. "How did flying cars begin exactly?"

Jus laughed. "It's a funny story, actually. Remember how back then traffic in Metro Manila was just the worst?"

"Fucking hell, Metro Manila traffic is still the worst," Josh said, rolling his eyes. "Sitting for three hours in a cramped bus at EDSA with my ass becoming numb as fuck is not fun."

"I can imagine," Jus replied with a grin. "The inventor shared the same sentiments as you actually. It wasn't a planned project, and he just decided, on a casual Saturday afternoon, to actually develop plans for a flying car. He developed a working prototype in three days."

Josh let out a low whistle. "Wonder how that went over with the DOTC."

"Oh they contested it. The government wasn't about to admit that some lowly engineer - according to them - provided a solution to the traffic situation, so they tried their damned hardest to suppress the information." Jus pointed out. "They weren't successful, though."

"Clearly." Josh scoffed. "So flying cars have been around for a long time?"

"They have. But the first few versions of course needed to be perfected. The inventor sadly passed on before he could develop his blueprints further." Jus added as he turned the car. "But his adopted son continued the tech and it went on from there. Flying cars have actually only been commercially available for the public in the last 500 years. Air traffic has also changed quite drastically, and continuous improvements are still being made."

"That is a long time."

"It is." Jus sighed wistfully. "The inventor has always been my hero growing up."

"Yeah, does he have a name?"

Jus paused. "Yeah he does, but well… we call him The Inventor or the Founder."

"Ooh, how mysterious." Josh chuckled.

"He does have a name," Jus replied hastily, almost defensive in his tone. "He just prefers some cloak of anonymity which is kinda pointless now that many people worldwide know who he is. Still, he's either The Inventor or The Founder to us."

"Man, I can only wish to have that big of an impact."

Jus chuckled, shaking his head. "You will," he replied. "I think you're great."

"Yeah well, not everyone thinks that." Josh muttered.

Jus glanced at him, and there was some weight to Josh's words. The other man stared out the window, at the clouds passing by.

"Hey, Josh?"

Josh turned away from the window to glance at Jus.

"You matter more than you'll ever realize." Jus told him, meaning every word.

Josh stared at him before he let out a dry laugh. "Funny…"

"What's so funny about that?" Jus asked him, looking hurt.

Josh looked at him with a small smile. "Nothing, it's just…"

"Just what?"

"Well, Vestell said the exact same thing."

***

Now that he wasn't in any peril, Josh could immediately recognize the old SBT corporation building. The walls looked seconds away from crumbling, and there were a lot of caution signs advising people to stay out.

Still, the fact that it was still standing after almost a thousand years was remarkable, as Josh knew very well that no matter how sturdy construction materials were during their time, they would most definitely depreciate after years of disuse.

“The government put the place into stasis,” Jus said by way of explanation once they managed to enter the gates. “They said it was for _preservation of history_ , but if you ask me, it’s just a waste of money.”

“Just how much of an impact did SBT have?” Josh asked incredulously. He knew that SBT was one of the leading corporations in the field of mechanics and engineering back in his own time, but he never figured their relevance would span a millennium.

“Well…”Jus paused. “They were really the best in the field, and went on to cater to multiple disciplines. The Founder made sure of that.”

When it became clear that Jus was not willing to expound, he dropped the subject and followed the commander into the building.

“Be careful,” Jus murmured as they stepped around some debris. “Just because the building is in stasis doesn’t mean there aren’t any hazards around.”

“Yeah, sure,” Josh grunted as they made their way down the corridor. The building was in a state of disrepair, and Josh could only vaguely make out the rooms that he used to work in. It was simultaneously familiar and yet so distant to him.

“I used to work here,” Josh suddenly said as they walked. “I mean - I still work here, but like...in my time.”

“Ah yeah?” Jus asked, his voice taking on a weird tone. “How is it?”

“I’m just one of the low-level engineers,” Josh responded, huffing out a humorless laugh. “It’s glorified grunt work. I’m assigned to work on quality control mostly.”

“I know this might not be the case, but do you enjoy what you do?” Jus asked, looking back at him in askance.

Josh shrugged, unsure of how to respond. “I guess I do, but I feel like I’m not using my full potential. I graduated top of my class, and I completed two master's degrees by the time I was 21. Quality control is…easy," he finished with a grimace.

"Well, what a waste it would be to not use your talents to their fullest extent,"Jus remarked with a frown.

"Yeah well, corporate bureaucratic bullshit can do that to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Josh sighed. "I really didn't come from money. I had a difficult childhood, and I left home when I was 15 to seek better opportunities. I was fortunate enough to get scholarships and admittance to state universities, but I had to work my ass off to get myself through school. But then, some asshole with a name and more money than me just sails straight into Alpha level."

"The world can be unfair." Jus replied. When he looked back at Josh, the engineer's features were downcast. He gently took Josh's hand in his, causing the other to look up in surprise.

"I'm sure you'll get your big break soon," Jus said, smiling as he rubbed Josh's knuckles with the pad of his thumb. "You're smart, hardworking, and handsome to boot. They'll regret ever overlooking you."

And with that, Jus let go of his hands and proceeded to beckon him forth. "We're near the site. Stick with me okay?"

Josh nodded after a few seconds. He followed Jus as they trudged through the hall, but there was one thing running through his mind.

_He thinks I'm handsome._

***

They finally arrived at the Alpha Level labs. It was such a sad sight to see hallways that used to be alive with innovation and technology now become quiet and bleak. When he first started at SBT corporation more than three years ago, he made it his goal to make it to Alpha Level.

Unfortunately, life truly wasn’t very fair. Josh watched as new employees that came after him sailed almost easily into Alpha Level. They either had the right connections or the right amount of money. Nobody gave a shit that Josh graduated top of his class and had already more degrees than even the top execs.

He was a nobody to them.

And now, he stood in the very same place. It was bittersweet, seeing how SBT was reduced to mere shambles, and it was only stasis helping to maintain the very grounds.

"Alright, here we are." Jus breathed out as they entered the inner chambers.

In the middle stood the time machine.

Josh stared up at the same machine that he had been looking at merely days ago. Compared to its bright lights and flashing screens, it was now dark and incredibly dusty. Josh figures this was where he ended up when he accidentally hit the switch from his own time. He never got a closer look because he had been immediately surrounded by guards from all around.

He approached the machine, careful not to trip over the wires snaking around the floor.

A beautiful machine...left to rot.

"Is this also in stasis?" Josh asked, running a finger over the dusty surface. The machine looked about ready to collapse. "How has it retained its shape after a thousand years? Metal and plastic might take a little longer to depreciate than organic material, but surely a thousand years… "

Jus brought up PAUS and started typing. "This isn't the first version of the machine according to the reports. SBT continued remodelling and studying this. I do believe that yes, this is also under stasis."

"So what are we looking for?" Josh asked as he moved around, taking in every single detail of the machine in front of him.

"Vestell wants to know the exact moment you arrived here." Jus replied. "We think that perhaps by going back, we can actually determine the exact moment you were taken from your time."

Josh studied the machine, recalling the blueprints for it. "Is there any record of blueprints for this? Can you dig it up in PAUS?"

"Let me see…" Jus trailed off as he tapped away, the holographic blue of the screen illuminating his face. Josh shook his head to focus on the task at hand.

He had to admit, though, that in this moment, Jus looked almost ethereal.

"Ha, got 'em." Jus muttered after a few minutes. Sure enough, the blueprints appeared above them on a holographic screen. Jus looked up at Josh with a triumphant grin on his face like he just won the lottery. "Had to dig deep into the archives for these."

Josh squinted at the blueprints - they were almost the same ones he had briefly seen before his untimely jaunt into the future only with a few modifications - and his eyes roved over every detail.

The blueprints were a work of art. The details were intricate and various messy notes were in the margins. It was almost unlike anything he's seen before.

"There…" he murmured, pointing to the screen. "The machine keeps logs of every time it is activated. I think I know how to get to that, but we'll need to power the machine up."

"How…how long will you need?" Jus asked as he looked around.

"2 minutes, maybe less." Josh muttered, going over the blueprints in his head.

"If we start power to this, we have less than that until the force arrives." Jus explains. "We have sensors in place to ensure nobody attempts to use the machine."

"That should do, I think." Josh pushed his sleeves up to his elbows before running his fingers through his hair. "Let's power this bad boy up."

When Jus didn't respond, Josh looked back at him to find Jus staring at him, eyes wide. "What, is there something on my face?"

Jus shook his head. "S-sorry, got distracted for a moment."

Josh chuckled, ducking his head. "Keep up, commander," He said with a wink. "Can't have you spacing out on me now."

He then turned to face the machine. "So, let's turn you on, huh?"

***

_Commander._

Jus absolutely hated being called commander outside of the force. He wasn't one to flex his title, nor did he want to draw any undue attention to himself.

But hearing it come from Josh, with his teasing grin and cheeky wink, made him gulp.

He slapped himself mentally - now was not the time to be thinking these things. They had a mission at hand, and Jus could not afford to be distracted now.

"If the blueprints are correct - and they usually are - there's a switchboard here somewhere," Josh was saying as he looked around, disappearing behind the machine. There was a squeak of hinges heard two seconds later, and Josh let out a small "Yay!"

 _Fuckin' adorable,_ Jus thought with a smile as he walked over.

"The switchboard is mostly intact," Josh explained as he pulled the cobwebs away. "The prints also state that this machine could not be plugged into the main power grid. Regular electricity ain't gonna cut it."

"Oh yeah?"

Josh nodded. "Yup. The NGCP would have had their heads if they did because they'd be using enough power to render the entire island of Luzon powerless for a week or two."

"You got all that from the blueprints?"

"It's an assumption, but it could very well be the case. The blueprints mentioned an approximate amount of power, and Vestell also explained that time jumps require so much energy, more than what simple electricity can provide. The amount of energy to get this going…SBT must have created their own power source or harnessed it." Josh explained as he looked over at the main switchboard.

"So whereabouts might we find this power source?" Jus asked him. "Is there a switch or generator?"

Josh shook his head. "It wouldn't be that easy. Either they kept it underground if they created one or…" his eyes travelled towards the window near the ceiling, his smile widening. Sunlight streamed in through the glass, shining directly upon them.

Jus followed his line of sight. "The sun?"

"Sometimes the most complicated problems require the simplest solutions," Josh said, crossing his arms and looking at Jus with a smile. "The blueprints also mentioned a solar converter. Maybe if we direct enough sunlight to that, we might just be able to start the machine long enough to get the info we need and be out of here in less than a minute, assuming nothing else goes wrong."

"And how do we do that?"

Josh stepped back, craning his neck to look at the top of the machine. "There should be receptor panels on the top. But it'll need direct sunlight. The thing with sunlight is that it disperses once it reaches the atmosphere. We need something to focus it on the panels. Glass may work, so if we just…"

Jus gaped at him. Here he was, the Inventor, albeit in his younger years. This was the man he idolized growing up. He studied his works extensively, but to actually hear him speak was a whole new experience altogether.

He didn't know what to think. Jus has always been a sucker for any tech talk - he can listen to science and engineering lectures all day if he wanted to - and he really valued intellect in a person. His ex was a highly intelligent person, and Jus used to love listening to him simply talk about whatever he was currently working on at that time.

He had absolutely no idea why Josh was making him feel these things again, but he wanted to hear more.

But, sadly, he couldn't.

Not when Josh had to go back.

It was getting increasingly difficult not to fall, though, and Jus didn't know if he should stand his ground or let emotions take him.

"So what do you think?" Josh was asking. His eyes were wide and bright, an idea clearly forming in his mind. "Let's give it a go?"

Jus snapped out of his reverie. "Sorry, can you run that by me again? You lost me for a minute there."

He half expected Josh to roll his eyes, to sigh and mutter, or make a big deal out of it. 

But instead of doing any of that, Josh simply smiled softly and nodded. "Sure thing. So here's what we're going to do…"

***

Once they got everything set up, Jus took a step back to briefly admire their handiwork.

He also took a moment to admire Josh. When he started working on what they needed, he seemed to get lost in a haze, focus narrowed on the task at hand. Jus could just watch him work all day.

"Okay, north is that way - which means that window is east side - so if we get our timing right, the sun should shine directly through the glass in approximately eight minutes," Josh breathed out once everything was put in place. "Once the progress bar reaches fifty, hit the switch, and I'll stay here by the panel board to get the information you're looking for."

"Fifty, switch, got it." Jus repeated as he stood by the lever. The minutes passed in silence before Jus felt the need to speak up. "You know awfully a lot about this machine already despite only having seen the blueprints minutes ago."

Josh chuckled. "I didn't graduate top of my class for nothing. Four minutes."

"It's very impressive." Jus told him, a fond look on his face. "And you said you'd be of no use. You've done most of the problem solving and I just stood here and did as you said."

"Well I stand corrected then," Josh laughed as he glanced at the time. "Thank you, though. Couldn't have done it without you standing there and doing everything as I said. Two minutes."

Jus got into position, ready to pull the lever. He focused on the progress bar, a bleak 0 blinking on the screen.

Soon enough, the sun streamed in through the open window. Jus watched, fascinated, as the light went through the glass, a singular beam of the sun's rays hitting the solar receptor on top of the machine.

There was a loud whir accompanied by a harsh clanging sound. Slowly, the progress bar started to fill up, and Jus kept an eye on it as it slowly hit ten...twenty...thirty...forty…

“NOW!” Josh yelled as the bar hit fifty and Jus pushed down the lever with all his might.  
All of a sudden, a small alarm was heard.

“Oh shit,” Jus cursed under his breath. "How much longer?"

"I just got past the mainframe," came the slightly panicked response. "Holy shit, there's a lot of data here!"

"Well we better hurry. We tripped the alarm already, and we'll be surrounded by the force in approximately 90 seconds." Jus grit out, and Josh nodded in response.

"I am just about there…” Josh trailed off before he yelped in triumph. “I got them! Information downloading.”

Jus looked around anxiously. The response time of the force was impeccable - he drilled it into them himself - so when he heard the faint whirring of their flying patrol cars from a distance, he knew they had to act fast.

"How much longer?" Jus asked.

"It's almost done and… CUT THE POWER!" He shouted and Jus pulled the lever up, effectively turning off the machine.

He immediately rushed to Josh. "Alright, let's go!" He yelled, practically lifting Josh up.

"Wait, we need to cut the solar converter off," Josh yelled as he struggled in Jus’ arms. "We can't overload the machine!"

Jus growled in frustration before he turned back and swiftly struck down the makeshift structure he Josh put together. The beam of sunlight dispersed and the glass shattered onto the ground.

"Alright let's go!" Jus urged him forward.

They were about to step out into the main hallway when the echo of combat boots filled the air. Jus looked around frantically before he quickly pulled Josh close to him, pushing them down into a small space hidden from sight.

The doors slammed open, and Romero's voice echoed throughout the chambers. "Search the place. They can't have gone very far."

"Yes, captain!"

Josh's eyes grew wide in panic, and Jus put a hand over his mouth to minimize any noise he might make. He looked into Josh's eyes, seeking forgiveness for the situation they found themselves in.

He then leaned in. "Let me take care of this," Jus murmured softly into Josh's ear, not noticing how the other man shuddered slightly at the sensations. "Stay here, and stay quiet."

Josh nodded, trying to make himself as small as possible. Jus made a move to stand but not before he squeezed Josh's arm in assurance.

He wonders why his heart thumped loudly in his chest.

***

Josh watched from the shadows as Jus made his way across the room, surprisingly avoiding detection. His face slipped into his commander mask before he cleared his throat to call the attention of Romero.

"Commander!" Romero hissed, but there was surprise written in his eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm doing my job, same as you, Romero." Jus replied coolly. "The alarm was tripped, and as I was near the area, I came to investigate."

"Top levels are clear, captain. No sign of forced entry or exit," one of the agents announced, interrupting them. "Team Delta also confirms that the lower levels are clear."

"Search the East Wing," Jus told them. "There are some unguarded exits there. They could take that route."

"Affirmative, commander. Teams Alpha and Beta, mobilize to the East Wing!"

Romero looked at him suspiciously, but Jus simply raised an eyebrow in return. He wasn't one to be intimidated, especially not by this greasy weasel called Romero.

"So what have you found so far?" Jus then asked one of the agents who was looking around the machine.

"There is evidence that they attempted to start the machine and were partially successful," the agent replied. "Though, it seems that it wasn't to do a time jump."

"Why else would they use the machine, then?" Romero growled.

"We are unsure at this point, captain. They just accessed the mainframe," came the response. "Time logs were retrieved.

"What could they possibly need these time logs for?" Romero asked incredulously. He turned to look at Jus. "Commander, I don't suppose this incident may be related to the time jumper we captured a few days ago?"

"Evidence points in that direction, Romero," Jus responded curtly. "He may be attempting another jump."

"It's also very odd that he managed to slip our grasp when he was last seen with you." Romero added with a smirk. "I wonder how he escaped even the clutches of our great and powerful commander."

"You flatter me, Romero," Jus replied, sarcasm lacing his voice. "He escaped. I didn't realize it. We all make mistakes, and now, I'm doing what I can to locate him again."

Romero hummed, stalking around Jus. "Okay, we'll stick with your story."

He then proceeded to get up in Jus' face. "But, if I ever find out that you aided or abetted his escape, say goodbye to your title," he snarled. "You won't get away this time, and the commander position will finally be mine."

"Go ahead and try digging up evidence," Jus challenged. "You're going to be chasing a ghost."

"Commander Jus, Captain Romero," an agent walked up to them. "The whole building is clear. No sign of any time jumpers, and no other sensors were triggered."

"Well then, agent dela Cruz, make sure that everybody packs up and heads back to HQ." Jus told them. "And we'll be on high alert just in case they try something again."

The agent nodded and proceeded to call back the teams.

Jus watched as they all headed into their respective cars and flew back. Romero was one of the last to leave.

"You better tread carefully, commander," he warned. "I'm watching you."

Jus smirked. "Then go ahead. In fact, I dare you."

Romero growled before shutting the door and lifted off.

"See you, Romero," He waved as the man flew up and over the buildings.

Jus watched and waited until all they were out of sight before he rushed back inside.

***

"Are you alright?" Jus asked him once the coast was clear. Josh nodded, a bit shaken.

"Yeah. I got the info we need. Let's get out of here," Josh muttered.

Jus led them out of the building, and Josh sighed in relief as they clambered into his car.

They flew away from the site, and as soon as they were a safe distance away, Josh breathed out heavily. "That was close."

"It was."

"Has he always been like that?" Josh asked minutes later when the silence became a bit too unbearable.

"Who, Romero?"

"Yeah…it seems like he's got a real issue with you." Josh said.

Jus sighed. "We were good friends before…back in the Academy. He wanted the Commander title for so long, but he never really proved himself to the higher ups. He always put himself first, and always did things to serve his own personal interest."

"I knew he wanted the title, so when exams were announced for the post, I refrained from taking them at first," Jus continued to explain. "Keane was the one who pushed me to try. We both passed, but I was chosen to take the title."

He then turned to Josh. "That was three years ago, and since then he's had a personal vendetta against me. He keeps saying to anyone who would listen that I don't deserve the post, but his records more than prove that he is incapable of leading the force."

"Man, I'm so sorry to hear that." Josh replied with a sigh. "And I'm sorry I put you into this situation. Because of me, you're probably going to be in big trouble."

"Hey, none of that," Jus said, reaching to grasp Josh's hand in his. "I promised to help you, and I am not one to break my promise."

"But why are you even helping me? I'm nobody." Josh pointed out as their fingers intertwined.

"No you're not." Jus told him. "You matter to a lot of people."

"Do I?"

Jus smiled at him. "Yeah, and even if everybody else doesn't think so, you matter to me."

With that, Jus squeezed his hand, and Josh smiled.

"Thanks… For everything."

Then, in a bold move, Josh pulled Jus' hand towards his lips before pressing a soft kiss to the back of his hand.

Jus' breath hitched.

"Of course," Jus murmured, the sensations of Josh's lips lingering on his hand like a ghost. "Anything for you."

***

They stopped at a restaurant for a quick lunch.

"I am hungry," Josh groaned as he took a bite out of the burger. "This is really good!"

Jus watched him, a stupid grin on his face. "I'm glad you like it. It's a favorite of mine."

They ate in amicable silence, Josh polishing off his burger while Jus dug into his chicken.

"So, what other plans do we have after this?" Josh asked.

"Well, we have to bring the info to Vestell. He'll know what to do so we can take you back." Jus told him.

"No working time machines in these parts, huh?"

"We could technically try sending you back the way you came," Jus pointed out. "But as you saw, that machine is very old. And, because time travel is illegal, any machines or contraptions used are destroyed and/or deactivated. It's more difficult to go back than it is to move forward, too."

Josh hummed. "I see. I do wonder, though, why is time travel illegal?"

Jus swallowed his food. "It's dangerous. Imagine being able to go back in time and changing events. The Time Police was also set up by the Founder because he wanted people to ensure the safety of the timeline."

"And what happens to time jumpers?" Josh asked after, leaning in.

"My, you are inquisitive today, aren't you?" Jus asked with a grin.

"I am curious, because your work seems quite complicated." Josh retorted. "It doesn't seem to add up."

"It is very complicated," Jus agreed. "Our work is actually to correct anything they might have changed or thwart them before they could even try. There's a lot of history there that would take ages for me to explain."

"Well, try me."

"Well maybe the abridged version would be easier to understand," Jus said.

The commander then took a deep breath, and he was about to speak when the PAUS on his wrist lit up and let out a series of urgent beeps.

"What's happening?" Josh asked, concern written on his face.

Jus looked up with furrowed eyebrows, panic slowly painting his features. "Keane just sent out a distress signal."

The beeping continued before it abruptly cut off. The silence was deafening, and Josh's heart pounded at the implications.

Jus immediately got up and urged Josh to follow him. "Quickly, let's go!"

Josh didn't think twice, and followed Jus back into his car.

The flight back to Keane and Vestell's place seemed longer than it really was even with Jus flying almost maniacally. Josh wasn't familiar with air traffic rules of this time, but Jus sure as hell broke maybe ten of them as he sped through the air.

From a distance, they could see a tall plume of smoke, and Josh held on as Jus went into hyperdrive.

When they landed, they were met with soot, ash, and crackling flames engulfing the modest house.

There were no words to describe the sight. Vestell and Keane's home was up in flames. The heat was near unbearable as the fire raged and consumed the building.

"No!" Jus screamed as he rushed forward, but he was caught by surprise with Josh pulling him back.

"Are you crazy? You can't just run into a burning building!" Josh yelled at him.

"Vestell and Keane could be stuck in there!" Jus said, struggling out of Josh's grip. "I have to do something!"

"And burn yourself in the process?" Josh asked incredulously, keeping a surprisingly tight grip on Jus.

"I can handle it!" Jus yelled as he yanked Josh's hand off of him. He took off running towards the house but he barely made it halfway when an explosion shook the entire street, and the house crumbled into ash.

Jus fell onto his knees just as Josh caught up to him.

"No…" Jus sobbed brokenly, staring helplessly at what was left of the house. Josh pulled him close and wrapped his arms around him.

Jus sobbed, clinging onto Josh like a lifeline before he let out a heart-wrenching scream as they watched the fire rage through what's left of the house.

In the background, there were sirens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( ͡ʘ ͜ʖ ͡ʘ) and i oop.


	4. Fallen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone is eager to silence them, eager to get to Josh. But, Jus isn't going to let him go without a fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *incoherent banshee screaming*
> 
> I HAVE FINALLY. FINALLY UPDATED. DEAR GOD, THIS TOOK A LONG TIME. I WAS SO UNINSPIRED FOR AWHILE, SO I COULDN'T WRITE, AND I GOT SO BUSY WITH OTHER STUFF THAT THIS TOOK A BACK SEAT, BUT I'M NOW BACK, AND CRANKED OUT NEARLY 6K WORDS OF THIS.
> 
> As a sidenote, I am incredibly bad at writing action scenes. I tried my best, but you be the judge. I'm more than willing to receive criticism, please. 
> 
> We're almost halfway there. I don't know how many chapters this will be, but I can promise you, we're nearing the halfway point I guess? 
> 
> Enjoy! I missed the commander and his anachronistic engineer, really. 
> 
> Stan SB19!

The fire was completely put out by the time dawn broke. Emergency services were crawling the place. Josh squinted against the sun’s rays that broke through the clouds. Beside him, Jus sat still, staring at the ashes where Vestell and Keane’s house once stood merely hours ago. 

With the inferno that greeted them, Josh knew it was unlikely anyone survived that.

“Commander,” a voice spoke to them, and both Josh and Jus looked up to see the fire chief walking towards them.

“What happened, chief?” Jus asked, voice low and dangerous. Josh felt a shiver run down his spine at the sight and sound of Commander Jus standing up and crossing his arms, glaring at the fire chief as he did so.

“We’re actually not sure,” the fire chief confessed. “What happened here was not an ordinary house fire. As you saw, it took our men the better part of the night to put it out.”

“What do you mean you’re not sure?” Jus nearly growled. “Chief, you might not be understanding the gravity of the situation. My closest friends live there. We left yesterday morning with the house intact, and now you’re telling me you have no idea how their house suddenly burst in flames?”

The fire chief - Macapantay, his nameplate read - scratched his head. “We’re exploring all possible theories, commander. We don’t want to rule out the fire as an accident, but with the way things are looking, it seems that way.”

Jus let out a frustrated sigh, and Josh reached out to grab his hand. Surprisingly, Jus intertwined their fingers, and he seemed to calm down a bit.

“Chief, just tell me...is there anything left of them?” Jus asked, tough voice giving way to a soft warble. “I need to...I have to tell their families.”

“What are you talking about, commander?” Macapantay asked, clearly confused. 

"The bodies, commander?" Jus said, confusion on his face. "My friends?" 

"My men report no findings of human remains," the chief responded, equally confused. 

“Are you saying the fire completely cremated my friends’ bodies?” Jus almost sobbed out, and Josh squeezed his hand. “Th-there’s nothing left?”

Macapantay shook his head. “I’m not saying that at all, commander. We did a complete sweep through of everything and well…” he trailed off, looking unsure as to whether he should say anything.

“Well what?” Josh finally grit out, his annoyance bleeding through. Are people still this incompetent these days?

Macapantay took a deep breath. “Well, that’s what is also confusing us as well. If there were any people burnt in the fire, we would have seen remains. It's impossible to not have any."

Macapantay then turned to them both. "But as I said, there are no traces of any remains whatsoever."

***

"The fire wasn't an accident," Jus told Josh later when they made it back to his apartment. "Someone is not very happy with us, and is trying to scare us off."

"It was probably a distraction," Josh added. "But what about Keane and Vestell? Does this mean they're alive somewhere?" 

"I can't rule out the possibility," Jus replied with a frustrated sigh. "We have to wait for them to contact us. We might compromise their safety if we go looking for them now."

"Well, what the hell do we do now?" Josh asked with a grimace. 

Jus sighed as he stared up at Josh, a mixture of emotions fluttering across his face.

"We have to get out of here. If they came for Vestell and Keane, they will go after us," came the response. "And we have to go now."

***

The flying car would apparently be too conspicuous, so they left it exactly where they parked it and set off on foot and take public transport to throw off anybody who could be tracking their every movement.

Jus explained that he had a safe house just a little ways outside of Metro Manila, which they need to get to. 

"Nobody but Keane knows of that safe house," Jus explained in the cab on the way to the train station. "It's completely off grid, and we should be safe there."

They arrived at the EDSA station, and Josh was absolutely gobsmacked at how everything had changed. Gone were the clunky tracks and easily broken train carriages of the old MRT. This train apparently ran on some sort of anti-gravity, causing it to float just a bit above the magnetic rails. There was no sound of wheels clicking across metal, and the way the train arrived smoothly into the station was enough to give Josh an engineering orgasm. There was no irritable squeal of the brakes, no ever present smell of electrical burning - it was an engineering marvel. 

Josh wished he had more time to observe the way the MRT worked, but then Jus was pulling him inside, and the doors closed behind them. 

They then settled into the train carriage of the MRT, Jus sitting with his back to the wall to give him a clear vantage point.

They were quiet the entire trip. Jus was dressed to blend in, and Josh tried his best to look like he belonged. 

All in all, the entire trip probably took about less than an hour. Once they alighted the train at the very last station, Jus was leading Josh towards the line of buses that passed the route leading to the safe house. 

"I hope Keane and Vestell are okay," Josh said quietly a few minutes into their trip. 

"They will be," Jus murmured with utmost confidence. "Keane is one of the best men I've worked with, and Vestell is incredibly smart too. They'll find a way out."

"Have they not made contact yet?" 

Jus turned the interface of his PAUS toward him discreetly. "Nothing new at the moment. They're probably still on the move."

Josh nodded, sitting back in his chair, and then he let out a quiet laugh. 

"What's so funny?" Jus asked him. 

"Nothing, I-" Josh chuckled, shaking his head. "I never thought I'd get caught up in this whole thing."

Jus sighed. "I'm sorry for that, by the way. You have no business being here, but I seem to have put you in harm's way."

"No, don't be sorry," Josh told him, taking his hand as he looked into Jus' eyes. "I'm glad it did happen."

"Wait, you're glad that our lives are probably in danger right now?" Jus asked, confused. 

"Well, maybe not the danger part but…shit," Josh paused, before he gave Jus a sincere smile. "Am I glad that I met you because of all this."

***

Jus could barely concentrate the entirety of the trip.

Josh had fallen asleep at one point, head resting on his shoulder as the bus traveled further south. Jus understands - the man probably didn’t experience this much action in his day, much less over the course of a week - so the moment Josh’s head touched his shoulder, he simply adjusted his position so that the other man was more comfortable.

But, he couldn’t get past what Josh told him earlier.

_“Am I glad that I met you because of all this.”_

What did that mean? Jus felt a pang in his chest. At some point, Josh did really have to go back to his time, and that was his ultimate goal. He just wanted to help right the timeline and take him back, but he didn’t expect to have fallen in love so fast.

He shook his head. Now was not the time to think about this. 

Not when Keane and Vestell were out there somewhere.

Finally, the bus arrived at their stop. Gently, Jus prodded Josh awake.

“Hey, come on,” he murmured softly, smiling at the sight of Josh blinking his eyes open. “Let’s go, we’re here.”

The alighted the bus and watched as it sped off into the distance.

Jus then turned to Josh and held out his hand. Josh took it in his without hesitation, a grin on his face.

“Let’s go then,” Jus said. “This way.”

***

When Jus said “safe house,” Josh was expecting maybe a fortress surrounded by the most advanced security in the world.

He wasn’t expecting a literal house in the middle of a goddamn field of all places.

“Wait, where are we?” Josh asked as he stepped through the grass. “I thought we were going to your safe house?”

Jus pointed to the quaint house standing in the middle. “That is the safe house. Completely off the grid, untraceable. I made sure of that. I can’t risk the people living here after all.”

“I’m sorry, which people-?”

“Justicen!” A voice called out, and Josh looked to see a middle-aged woman come out of the house, and Jus cringed at the name.

“Ma, I thought I told you not to call me that,” He said as he greeted the woman - who was apparently his mom - in a hug.

“Oh shush, you’re my son, I will call you with your proper name,” she said. “Well, who do we have here?”

Jus grinned. “Ma, this is Josh. We uh, need a place to lay low for now.”

“Oh of course, come in you two! You must be hungry.” She said, leading them inside. “Dinner will be ready in a few, so make yourselves comfortable.”

“Thank you,” Josh said, inclining his head. 

The moment Jus’ mom left them, Josh leaned in with a grin. “So, _Justicen_?”

Jus grimaced. “Yeah, uh...I never really liked my first name.”

“Well, I think it’s really cute,” Josh replied, chuckling when Jus pouted at him. “Alright, I’ll stop. So, this is your safe house?”

Jus nodded. “It’s where I grew up actually, and when I entered the force, I did everything I could to keep my family safe because I knew I was going into some dangerous territory. It’s much safer here than at my apartment, and nobody aside from Keane really knows this place.”

They sat in silence for a while, the sound of Jus’ mom bustling around in the kitchen. Josh took the opportunity to look around the house. It was fairly sleek considering it was in the middle of a field, but it was to be expected, considering the time they lived in.

“So, what’s our plan now?” Josh asked as he turned to Jus.

Jus shook his head. He ducked his head, taking a deep breath before he turned to Josh. “I’m honestly at a loss. Until we can get in touch with Vestell and Keane, I guess we’re just stuck here for now.”

“What, okay, so our plan is basically we’re fucked.” Josh said, a sarcastic chuckle accompanying his words. Jus laughed, shaking his head.

“Yep, pretty much, but I’ve always been very good at unfucking myself,” Jus replied with a wink before he stood up to help his mom in the kitchen, leaving Josh gaping after him.

***

Dinner with Jus and his mom was an entire experience altogether. In between bites of seriously delicious food, Jus explained that he was the youngest in his family, and his two older brothers have already gone on their own ventures.

Josh particularly enjoyed talking to his mom, who had a lot of stories about Jus growing up. It was especially hilarious to see Jus - a big guy with broad shoulders and a distinct height advantage over Josh - shrink into his chair when his mom continued telling Josh stories from his childhood.

It was comforting to know that despite a literal millennium passing by, Filipino moms were still pretty much the same.

“Is it alright we crash here tonight, ma? We need a place to sleep tonight,” Jus asked her once they'd cleared up the dinner table. 

“Of course, but I’m afraid you’ll have to share a room, baby,” she told them as she put the plates back in the cabinets. “I trust your old room is still okay?”

“Yeah, ma, that’s perfect,” Jus said before he turned to Josh and, with a smile, beckoned him to follow him upstairs.

Jus’ old room was small - clearly he’d outgrown it - but Josh was entranced by the artful decorations littered about. Obviously, the room hadn’t been touched much since Jus left - aside from it being cleaned perhaps - but it still remained very much the room of a teenage boy. 

“You liked drawing?” Josh asked, pointing to one of the drawings on the wall.

“Yeah, I loved it. I always thought I’d do something with art growing up, but I guess life had other plans for me,” Jus replied with a grin. “Anyways, the bed’s a bit tiny, so you take it, and I’ll just sleep on the floor.”

Josh looked at the bed in the middle of the room. It was a little bigger than a double, and even if Jus was tall, there was certainly going to be enough space for both of them.

“We can share the bed,” Josh said after a few seconds of silence. “Besides, it’s your room. I wouldn’t want a repeat of yesterday morning where I tripped and fell on you.”

Jus laughed. “Well, it’ll be a tight squeeze.”

“We can spoon, it’ll be fine,” Josh retorted, causing Jus to laugh even harder. “We’ll fit. I’m not going to let you sleep on the floor in your childhood bedroom.”

“Alright, you win, we’ll share.” Jus said, holding his hands up with a grin. “But hey, if I start snoring, feel free to kick me down to the floor.”

At that, Josh let out a loud laugh. “It’ll be hard to hear you snoring over mine, but sure, we’ll see who ends up on the floor over the course of the night.”

Jus gave him a smile, his blue eye almost glinting with electricity. 

And fuck, Josh really was a goner, wasn’t he?

***

A loud beeping noise echoed around the room, causing Josh to blink his eyes open. He belatedly realized that Jus had an arm slung around him, making it near impossible for him to move. He could feel the breath of the other boy against his nape, and it sent shivers down his spine.

The beeping became louder, and more incessant this time. It didn’t sound like an alarm, though, as the intervals were sporadic at best. Josh looked up to see Jus’ PAUS beeping on the dresser.

“Jus?” He called out in a sleepy voice. “Hey, Jus, wake up.”

HE turned around in Jus’ hold, surprised at how the circuits around his eyes continued to illuminate his features. Jus was still fast asleep, his features relaxed and steady. Josh wanted nothing more than to continue staring into his gorgeous features, but the beeping became harder to ignore.

“Hey, hotshot, wake up.” He tried again, prodding Jus in the chest _and holy fuck what a nice chest it was_. “Your PAUS is beeping, wake up.”

Jus made a small noise of protest, but then he opened his eyes, and Josh’s breath was just punched out of him at the sight of the electric blue iris greeting him. 

“Wha-?” Jus sleepily mumbled out, blinking and rubbing his eyes.

“Your PAUS, it’s beeping,” Josh repeated as he sat up. 

Jus frowned before he threw the covers off and got out of bed. He grabbed his PAUS, and Josh watched in real time as the sleep left his entire body.

“It’s Keane,” Jus murmured, tapping on the PAUS. Josh approached and watched as a series of codes appeared on the interface.

“It’s their location,” Josh pointed out, seeing coordinates light up on the screen.

Jus proceeded to triangulate their position. In less than a second, he managed to pin it down.

“They’re in another safe house just a few hours away,” Jus said, logging the coordinates into PAUS before deleting Keane’s message. He glanced at the time - it was nearing 3 in the morning.

“We have to go,” Jus then said. 

“Wait, now?” Josh asked incredulously. “It’s three in the morning!”

“I’m aware of that,” Jus responded with a sigh. “We just can’t afford to waste anymore time, Josh. We have to go.”

He said this as he proceeded to get undressed in front of Josh. Josh’s eyes couldn’t help but travel down his muscled torso. The joy was short lived, though, as Jus immediately got into his suit.

“Don’t we have to say goodbye to your mom?” Josh asked as they walked out of the gate.

Jus shook his head. “I already sent her a message. I don’t want to disturb her sleep.”

“Wait, how will we get there? We have no car,” Josh asked as they walked back onto the main road.

“A bus passes here every half hour,” Jus said, and true enough, on the horizon, headlights appeared. The large bus stopped in front of them, and they quickly boarded and headed to the very back.

“We should be there in a few hours,” Jus told him. “You can sleep now if you want.”

“No, I’m awake as fuck,” Josh said, looking out the window anxiously. “Is this what you usually do?”

Jus shook his head. “Not so much espionage, but, I’ll be in deep shit after this.”

“Fuck, I’m sorry,” Josh began to say, but Justin shushed him with a finger to his lips.

“Don’t...don’t say sorry.” He said, sighing. “I made the decision to help you, and I keep my promises.” 

Josh nodded and he pursed his lips. 

“Go and sleep. I’ll wake you up when we’re there,” Jus said as the bus made its way to their destination.

***

Josh was asleep for a whole hour when the bus suddenly slowed down and let a few men on board.

Jus tensed up. Sure there were not many travellers this early in the morning, but there was something very suspicious about these men. 

Especially since neither of them carried any luggage with them.

The first man sat near the front of the bus, and the other sat near the emergency exit in the middle. They kept their attention focused forward, obviously trying not to draw any attention to themselves, but they were massively failing in Jus’ books. If these were his men back at the force, he’d be sorely disappointed.

He narrowed his eyes when one of the men reached into his pocket. Jus was quicker, though. In a few short seconds, he had managed to lower Josh onto the seat behind him and drew his own gun.

True enough, he was staring down at the barrel of a gun similar to his.

“What do you want?” He hissed. It was a little difficult to balance himself as the bus continued moving, the driver completely unaware or just simply ignoring the showdown happening behind him.

“We want the time jumper,” the guy near the emergency exit replied with a snarl. “Give him to us, and we’ll be gentle with you.”

Jus bared his teeth. “I don’t think so.”

“We promise we won’t hurt you, much,” the other guy near the front said. “Give us the time jumper, now, and this won’t get ugly.”

“I think it already got ugly since you two assholes boarded the bus,” Jus snarked, keeping his gun up and ready to fire. “But, let’s negotiate. You two get off the bus now, and I promise not to hurt you too much as you walk away.”

“No can do, Commander,” came the reply from goon 1. 

At the title, Jus felt ice run down his spine. “Who sent you?”

“I’m afraid we’re not at liberty to say,” goon 2 said with a wicked grin. “So, just hand over the jumper, and we’ll pretend like nothing happened.”

“If you want him,” Jus said with bared teeth. “You’ll have to come through me first.” 

Jus wasn’t sure who took the first shot, but soon enough, a loud bang echoed throughout the bus, causing the driver to lose control and careen off the main road.

“The fuck is happening,” Josh yelled, poking his head out from behind the seat, but when he saw the guns trained at them, he immediately ducked.

“Stay down!” Jus told him. “I’ll take care of this.”

The driver immediately got off the bus, probably to call the police, and Jus had to get out of here before they could arrive.

“Commander, we want no quarrel. Just hand him over, and we'll leave quietly."

Jus snarled. "Funny, I'd rather go out with a bang."

It wasn't clear who pulled the trigger first, but shots were fired, and Josh ducked further behind the seat. 

Jus jumped over the seats, kicking goon # 2 in the chest, sending the large man staggering backward in the aisle. With a loud, frustrated growl, the man immediately picked himself back up, firing at Jus. Jus ducked, the shot narrowly missing his shoulder before he swiftly fired back. He clipped the man on the shoulder, causing a spurt of blood to flow from the wound. He fell to his knees, an agonizing scream from his throat.

“Don’t test me,” Jus growled, moving forward, cocking his gun. 

Goon # 1 suddenly yelled, charging forward and tackling Jus onto the ground. In the attack, Jus lost his grip on his gun, and he heard it clatter behind him somewhere. 

Jus struggled in the man’s hold - he was surprisingly strong - kicking and thrashing about, but the man was not letting up.

“We wanted this to be as painless as possible, commander,” came the deep growl accompanied with a toothy grin. “But, you forced our hand. We’ll have to take care of you first.” 

“Goddamn - let go of me, fucker!” Jus growled back. He suddenly felt himself being pulled up, before a punch landed on his abdomen.

_”Oh, we’re doing this old school, huh?”_ Jus thought as he fell backwards, the man sending a sardonic grin his way. He immediately got his footing back. In a swift movement, he sailed over the goon’s head, hitting him with his combat boots, causing the man to fall forward.

Jus then walked forward, grabbing the man by the collar. “Who sent you?” He demanded, shaking him. 

The man grinned. “The captain sends his regards, commander.”

At that, Jus’ blood ran cold. 

Taking advantage of his sudden distraction, the man pushed Jus back, putting all of his weight on him. “You’ve been a very difficult man to talk to, commander. We don’t like people who are difficult to talk to.”

He drew an electric taser from behind him, and Jus’ eyes widened at the flashes of electricity. With no hesitation, the man pushed the taser to his shoulder, dialing the voltage up high.

White hot pain filled his entire body, like a thousand knives stabbing him all at once, tearing a loud scream from his throat. Jus felt the currents flow through his body, the surge causing the circuits to overload from his eye down to his bionic arm. 

Then, a loud shot rang out, though muffled by the pain coursing through his body. As sudden as the electricity came, it was gone.

Jus watched as the man on top of him fell backwards, red blooming from his shoulder. He yelled in pain, and Jus took the opportunity to knock him completely unconscious. 

After a few seconds, as shakily as he could, he crawled from beneath the man. Jus winced at the electrical surges in his arm, causing him to flinch every so often.

_“Fuck, this was going to be a bitch to repair,”_ he idly thought.

He looked behind him, only to see Josh standing there, breathing heavily, gun aimed. At his feet, the other man was slumped forward, still breathing, but also knocked unconscious.

“H-h-ow d-d-did yo-you get th-there?” Jus asked incredulously, speech slurred and slightly stuttering from the electrical shocks he was still experiencing. 

“Crawled under the chairs,” Josh replied, safely putting the gun down and rushing forward to help Jus up. “We have to go, come on.”

“I’m s-su-sup-posed to say t-that,” Jus muttered. In a burst of adrenaline, Josh managed to support his 5’11 frame off the bus.

“Where do we go?” Josh asked, grabbing the PAUS from Jus’ wrist. Miraculously, it was still working despite the volts of energy pumped into his body. He quickly flashed Keane’s location - they were not far off.

“C’mon, Jus, just a few more, we’ll make it,” he grunted, supporting a staggering Jus at his side. “Let’s go before the police come.”

Jus let out a very slurred laugh, bliss blossoming across his features. 

“What’s so funny?” Josh asked as he practically dragged Jus forward. It was no easy feat - Jus was a very heavy man, and Josh did what he could to pull him along.

“N-n-no-not-nothing,” Jus stuttered out, a large grin on his face. “You’re pretty.”

“Wow, you really are out of it.” Josh joked, heaving as they made it a few more steps.

“Nah, even if I wasn’t like t-this,” Jus began with a sigh. “I’d still think you’re pretty.”

In the distance, Josh could finally see the safehouse. Thankfully, he was focused on keeping Jus safe, otherwise, he would have fallen over with the next sentence that came out of the commander’s mouth.

“S-s-so p-pre-pretty, w-wanna ki-kiss you s-so bad.”

***

The safehouse was like Jus’ childhood home: Small and unassuming in the middle of the field, hidden almost behind tall blades of grass.

It was those “blink-and-you’ll-miss-it” types of homes. 

Josh felt relief flood him as the doors opened to reveal Keane. Almost immediately, the man was at their side, carrying Jus with relative ease inside the house. 

The pure joy that came with seeing Vestell and Keane alive was overshadowed, though, by Jus suddenly falling unconscious. 

“He’s been shocked,” Josh told Vestell. “It may have overloaded something in him.”

“I’ll take care of him,” Vestell told him. “But, you rest now. You’ve surely had a long day. We all have. 

Josh sighed as he sagged on the couch, adrenaline fading from him. "Ves," he muttered. "That's putting it mildly."

***

The smell of bacon is what awoke Josh.

Almost immediately, he sat up, looking around. He took his time to observe his surroundings - the house was small - smaller than Jus’ childhood home, but it was cozy and quaint, with minimal design. 

He craned his neck to the side and noticed the kitchen was not far off. Keane was standing there, in just pajama bottoms, frying off some bacon and eggs.

“Good morning,” Keane greeted him with a grin as Josh walked into the kitchen. “Well, afternoon is more accurate, I guess. It’s 3 in the afternoon now. Jus is okay if you wanted to know; he’s just resting.”

“That’s good to know,” Josh murmured, taking a seat at the dining room table. “What the hell happened yesterday?” he then asked, voice scratchy from all the screaming and excitement of yesterday. 

“It’s still something we’re figuring out. Once Jus wakes up, I’m sure we’ll get more information,” Keane replied, flipping the eggs over into a plate. “Do you want anything? This place is well stocked.”

Food was the furthest thing from Josh's mind right now, though. 

"How is Jus?" 

"He's recovering. Vestell is the one who helps him with the mechanical problems." Keane replied. 

"What uh…what happened to him?" Josh asked, and Keane tensed. 

"It's probably something you should ask him, yourself." came Keane's response. "But with the way he acts around you, I'm sure he'd be willing to open up."

"What do you mean?" 

Keane chuckled. "He's sweet on you. Surely you would have noticed it by now. He's as obvious as a brick hitting you in the face."

***

Jus woke up sometime in the evening, and Vestell urged Josh to go and see him.

Jus looked incredibly small in the bed. He turned his head at the sound of the door whooshing open, and he smiled at Josh who walked in. 

Taking a deep breath, the engineer moved forward and settled on the edge of the bed. Jus pushed himself up to a sitting position. 

"I'm sorry," Jus murmured once Josh sat down. 

Josh frowned. "What are you sorry for?" 

"I put you in harm's way," came the response. "I- I nearly got you killed."

Josh rolled his eyes with an exasperated smile. "I should be saying sorry. If I didn't drop into your lives, you wouldn't be here now."

"Hey, I made the decision of helping you." Jus pointed out. "I should be keeping you safe."

"Not at the cost of your own life," Josh replied, and his eyes traveled down the length of Jus' right arm. With no cloth covering it, he could see the metal limb attached to his shoulder. The electrical circuits ran up his arm, to his neck, and up to the right side of his face and eye. "What happened to you?" 

Jus shrank back a bit, and Josh sighed. 

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me," he murmured, but then Jus was raising his arm, beckoning Josh to come closer and have a look. 

"I was just a new guy in the force," Jus began as he moved a bit so Josh could sit next to him. “And I was caught in a crossfire between this jumper who was trying to escape and some of my team members.”

Josh looked at the piece of machinery. Jus’ arm was an incredible piece. It no doubt took a lot of effort to make sure the wires crossed right so that it moved and felt like a real human arm.

“I got caught in an explosion,” Jus continued, as Josh ran his fingers up and down the bionic arm, committing every single nook and cranny to memory. “The explosion took out my arm and nearly half of my face.”

“Oh,” Josh murmured softly. “How did- how did you survive?”

Jus chuckled. “It was all thanks to Vestell. He was already one of the leading biomedical engineers at that time, so the doctors tapped on him to help. He basically reconstructed my face and arm, so all the machinery you see here is all thanks to him. I’ve had upgrades since then, and Vestell and I remain good friends until now.”

“Wow,” Josh breathed out. “Vestell’s a genius.”

“He is. Because of him, I’ve lived this long, and it’s actually how he and Keane met. But, he doesn’t take credit for it. He always refers to the Founder, who was his hero as well.” Jus explained, a fond smile directed at Josh. “We all learned from the Founder.”

“This is the nth time you’ve mentioned _the Founder._ ” Josh said with a grin. “Are you ever going to tell me about him?”

“Maybe another time,” Jus said after a beat. “I’m tired.”

“You must be,” Josh laughed. “You took quite the electric shock.”

“I’ve had almost half my brain matter fried,” Jus replied dismissively. “I can safely say, I’ve had it worse.”

Josh scooted over so that he sat close to Jus. “But you don’t have to. You’re a good man, and I feel like I made things complicated by coming here. Sejun was right, I shouldn’t have played around with things I didn’t understand.”

Jus looked at him before he reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind Josh’s ear with his left hand. “But, if you hadn’t done that, I don’t think we would be here right now, and I quite like where we’re at.” 

“This” being Josh nearly straddling Jus, their faces mere inches from one another.

“Look,” Josh murmured, moving closer. “I know you were incredibly out of it earlier, but did you mean it?”

“Mean what?” Jus asked, a husky whisper pouring forth from his lips.

“That you wanted to kiss me?” Came the question.

In response, Jus surged forward, capturing Josh’s lips in a desperate kiss. It was enough to knock the air out of the engineer, but he immediately kissed back, feeling Jus smile against his lips.

Soon, clothes were thrown off, and Josh pushed Jus back against the bed. “Let me take care of you,” he murmured. “You’ve had a long day.”

Jus grinned, leaning back. “Well, what are you waiting for, baby?” He asked cheekily before Josh pulled him into another kiss. 

When he finally sank down on Jus, Josh felt his eyes roll to the back of his head.

“Fuck - move!” Jus groaned, and Josh complied, proceeding to bounce up and down on his lap.

The room was soon filled with the sound of their hard and desperate fucking, their breaths intermingling, cries and moans filling the air. 

It was one of the best Josh has ever had.

Later, when they were sated and cleaned, Josh snuggled against Jus, resting his head against his muscled chest, listening to his heart beat.

Jus sighed and closed his eyes, his fingers playing with the strands of hair on Josh’s head. A million thoughts ran through his mind, and no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t get rid of them. 

On one hand, he was ecstatic to know that he and Josh were on the same page, that they both liked each other. He imagined a future with Josh, and he was more than happy to have him in his life. He was no longer this guy that he viewed as a hero - that was a different Josh. 

This Josh was someone he wanted to come home to. He fit right in with their group, and in a few days, Josh assimilated himself so well into their lives that it was as if he almost belonged. 

He wanted to believe this was something that he could have.

But, as a few tears slipped from his eyes, he knew that this wasn’t going to be the case.

Jus looked down and pressed a soft kiss to the crown of Josh’s head.

Fuck, he didn’t want to let go. Not when he had something finally good in his life, especially after…

Jus couldn’t even bear to think of his name.

But the universe said he had to let go. It was only right.

The thing is, was Jus willing to sacrifice the future of a million people for his own benefit?

Before all of this, he would have vehemently said no.

But now?

Well.

He didn’t know.


	5. Two Worlds Apart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No matter how they looked at it, they would always be two worlds apart, and sometimes, it hurts to be reminded of that fact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH
> 
> that's all I get to say at this point. I hope this wasn't too rushed for you guys, but I'm excited for the next few chapters. 
> 
> Enjoy, and stan SB19!

Josh woke up, and the first thing he realized was that he was still on top of Jus, with the commander's arms wrapped around him. 

He looked up, and he couldn't help the smile that bloomed on his face. Jus apparently falls asleep with his mouth slightly open, and there was just a bit of drool on the corner of his lips. 

Josh leaned in and pressed a kiss onto Jus' bare skin, lips brushing against the man's neck, and he grinned when Jus shifted in his sleep, his arms tightening their grip around Josh. 

"Good morning," Josh murmured, kissing further down Jus' neck to his collarbones, causing the commander to squirm slightly. 

"Good morning, indeed," Jus replied, opening one eye to peek at Josh, and the engineer could get lost in the swirls of electric blue. "We should get up."

Josh pouted. "I mean, do we have to? I am quite comfy where I'm at."

"I know you are, but your elbow is digging into my bladder, and I kind of need to pee."

Josh laughed, rolling off Jus and allowing the commander to sit up. He then leaned in and pressed their lips together, slow and sweet. Jus kissed like he had been in the desert for so long and Josh was an ice cold drink of water. 

"I really do have to pee, though" Jus murmured as he pulled away, chuckling as Josh chased after his lips. "I'll be back."

"Don't take too long, I miss you already," Josh replied with a grin and Jus grinned, stepping out of the room just as Josh flopped back into bed. 

After his business, he eagerly made his way back but not before he was accosted by Keane. 

"Well, someone got some last night," Keane teased, crossing his arms with a grin.

Jus felt his face heat up. "We weren't that loud."

"Vestell could hear you all the way down the basement," Keane said, laughing. 

"Well then, Vestell ought to mind his own business," Jus snarked back, but there was no bite to his voice. 

Suddenly, Keane sobered up. "I am happy for you, I really am. I like Josh, and not because he's - y'know - the Founder, but he's a great guy overall. I'm glad we got to know him as more than the hero we practically worshiped as kids."

"I am too," Jus replied, a smile gracing his face. 

"But you do realize that he has to go back, right?" Keane then asked, and the question dropped on Justin like a bucket of ice water. 

"Yeah," he replied quietly, suddenly feeling a lot smaller. 

Keane sighed, grabbing Jus by the shoulders. "I don't want to rain on your parade, but what happens when he does go back?" 

Jus sighed. "I don't know. I know I have a vow to uphold and that's to protect the timeline…" he trailed off, looking away. 

"But?" Keane prompted. 

Jus gave a humorless chuckle, turning back to Keane. "But I want to be selfish just for once, you know? Because finally, I think I have something good in my life."

He shook his head, taking a deep breath. "But then again, when have my needs ever outweighed the needs of the masses?" 

And with that, he brushed past Keane, leaving the other man standing in the hallway. 

***

Keane was right, though, Jus thought later when he was back in the room with Josh, as he came down from the incredible high that came with sex. Morning sex was nice and slow as he fucked into Josh, both of them taking their time to memorize each other's bodies, and kissing until they were out of breath. It was as if they were unwilling to let go. 

Well, Jus certainly was. 

"What are you thinking about?" Josh asked him as the engineer pressed a kiss to his cheek. 

What was he thinking about? A million things ran through his mind constantly, but it all seemed to be white noise when he had Josh in his arms. 

He cast his thoughts to the near future, when Josh would be at the precipice of another jump, and Jus would likely never see him again. He thought of the moment he'll have to let go, to put the future of millions first before his own needs. 

He had no idea why it hurt so much. 

If Jus weren't the commander, were not so dedicated to preserving the timeline, he would have said  _ fuck it  _ and whisked Josh away where no one will disturb them.

_ "But then again, when have my needs ever outweighed the needs of the masses?"  _

He was brought out of his thoughts with the sensation of fingers tracing his chest, and Jus looked at Josh, a fond smile on his face. "I was thinking about you. The past few days have been a whirlwind, but I'm glad you're here."

"I'm not that special," Josh murmured, but his words were kissed away by Jus. 

"You are," came the response, Jus punctuating his sentence with a long kiss. "You are so goddamn special, you have to believe that."

Josh ducked his head, a smile on his face. "Well, when you say it, I'm more inclined to believe."

"Then let me show you how special I think you are," he said, rolling them over so that he was on top of Josh. His fingers made their way to Josh's tender hole, still loose from their previous fuck. "May I?" 

"Yesss," Josh hissed, and Jus fingered him open slowly before he withdrew his fingers. 

When Jus finally aligned his cock and entered him in one swift motion, Josh keened, wrapping his legs around Jus, causing him to go deeper. 

And yeah, Jus could stay like this forever, Josh in his arms, chanting his name, making love all day long just because they could.

But alas, they were living on borrowed time. 

And even Jus didn't know how much time they had left. 

***

"Well, good morning," Vestell greeted them when they finally decided to get out of bed. "I had wondered if last night's events tired you out, but I suppose something else exhausted you."

Josh blushed to the roots of his hair, and he turned to look at Jus who avoided Vestell's gaze. 

"Come and eat," Vestell said, standing from the table. "Oh by the way, Josh, when you're done please meet me in the lab. I think I have figured it out and I need to pick your brain."

“Sure thing,” Josh replied with a smile as he and Jus settled down to eat. It was nearly noon, so it was more of brunch rather than breakfast, but they were hungry.

“Is your arm better?” Vestell was asking Jus, who nodded. 

“It’s still smarting a bit, but it’s better now than it was yesterday,” he replied, turning to look at Josh as he said that. “I had a little help getting back to order.”

Vestell made a face. “I’m sure you did. Anyways, see you later downstairs, Josh.”

And with that, Vestell stood up, presumably to go to his lab or to find Keane, leaving Josh and Jus alone in the dining area.

“You go ahead and eat,” Jus said as he stood up. “I’ll go and check if there’s any news on the attack on the bus. There’s bound to be something.”

“Need any help?” Josh asked him.

“No, I’ll be fine,” Jus replied, leaning over to press a tender kiss onto Josh’s lips. Josh kissed back, grinning as they pulled away. “You eat and meet up with Vestell. The sooner you do, the sooner we can figure out how far back in time you need to go.”

And there it was. Even though Jus refused to acknowledge it, a large majority of what they’ve been doing is to help Josh go back, to preserve the timeline. It was inevitable, and Jus wanted to break down and cry at how unfair it all was. 

And, Josh knew this too, judging from the way his face fell at those words.

“Yeah, you’re right.” Josh said after stuffing the rest of the bread roll into his mouth and swallowing it. “The sooner I’m back, the sooner I can stop being a nuisance here.”

He then stood up and turned to the hall that led to the basement where Vestell asked to meet him, leaving Jus standing alone in the kitchen.

***

“So, I figured it out,” were the first things Vestell told him when Josh finally made his way downstairs. The lab in the safe house was a far cry from the technological marvel that was Vestell’s home lab, but this was still leagues above anything Josh has ever worked in.

“What’d you do?” He asked, walking over and sitting beside Vestell. On the table in front of them, there was a small smartphone-like device. It looked eerily similar to Josh’s own phone, and when Vestell powered it up, his eyes widened at the very similar features.

When the hell did Vestell find the time to do this in between the fire, running for his life, and taking care of Jus’ arm?

“I spent all night working on this,” Vestell said, answering Josh’s unasked question with a grin as he swiped through. “I got the mechanisms down, but it still needs work. In any case, the reason we have this is for you to communicate with someone from your timeline and get the information we need. We can cross reference it then with the data gathered from the old SBT building, and work out, exactly, what second we need to take you to.”

“So it works?” Josh asked, opening the dialpad, ready to enter Sejun’s number from memory.

“It should. I messed around with the algorithms and the code a lot. I tested it by calling myself ten years ago, and my past self was quite delighted.” Vestell explained with a somewhat manic grin on his face. Josh can relate. “But, I haven’t tried to see if I can call someone that far in the past. I guess we’ll find out now, won’t we?” 

Josh turned back to the phone and clicked on the dialpad. 

“So, the first thing it should ask for is the day, month, and year,” Vestell explained as the program came to life. 

“Should I input the exact day I was taken?” Josh asked, scrolling through the numbers. Vestell shook his head.

“Give it some allowance,” came the response. “Maybe today’s date in your year. That should be enough time to pass for your friend to safely infiltrate the area. If you put in the date a few days ago, the place might still be crawling with guards.”

“Point taken,” as Josh entered  **30 - 07 - 2020** in the program. It then led him to another screen that asked for the phone number of the person he will contact. With no second thoughts, he entered Sejun’s number and to their utter surprise, it started to ring.

Sejun picked up on the fourth ring, his face peering into the screen. Josh could almost cry from relief. There was his best friend, his colleague, staring back at him. It was surely nice to see a familiar face in the midst of all the crazy he’s experienced.

“What the-  _ Josh?”  _ Sejun asked incredulously as he stared at his screen. 

“Sejun, oh my god, you have no fucking idea how happy I am to see you!” He exclaimed.

“I’ll leave you to it,” Vestell said as he stood up. “Watch the power though, that thing drains the battery real fast.”

Josh nodded, but he paid Vestell no mind as he stared into the incredulous stare of his best friend. When a few seconds passed with neither of them speaking, it was Sejun who finally broke the ice.

“What the hell happened to you? Where even are you?” He asked, nearly yelling into the phone. “Management is looking for you, and they’ve been doing so since you stupidly went into alpha level labs days ago. What the fuck did you get yourself into?”

“Buddy, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Josh replied tiredly, though he did miss Sejun’s incessant nagging. 

“Fucking try me. I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for days you absolute dumbass!” Sejun yelled. “Not even your family knew where you ended up. We thought…”

Sejun’s voice trailed off, cracking at the end. 

“We thought you’d died,” he said, voice small, and Josh felt a rush of guilt at that.

“I’m sorry I made you worry,” he replied once Sejun composed himself. “But look, I’m in a major pickle, and I really need your help. I somehow, magically, made it to the year 3000.”

Sejun blinked at him. For a moment, Josh wondered how the connection between timelines was so good when he could barely get a signal from any telecommunications network back in the day. Sejun’s face was as clear as day, and he could see every minute movement of his expressions. And sure enough, Sejun’s face went from confusion, then to disbelief before the other man started cracking up.

“Wow,” Sejun breathed out once he finally stopped laughing. “For a moment, I thought you said you traveled to the future. Great joke, by the way!”

“I’m not joking, you asshat,” Josh snarked back, and Sejun sobered up when he saw the serious expression on Josh’s face.

“B-but,” he stuttered out, unable to form words. “How the fuck, Josh?”

And Josh told him everything. From the moment he entered the alpha level labs to his sudden jaunt forward in time. He told Sejun about the torture he experienced upon arriving. He told him also about the crazy but lovable people he’s met since arriving, and of course, he spoke about the charming commander that’s been helping him from the start. Sejun fell quiet, listening intently as Josh spoke, letting the gravity of the past days sink into him.

“Wow,” was all Sejun could say once Josh finished. “That’s some shit you went through.”

“And I just want to go home,” Josh told him. “I’m so sick and tired of being stuck here because some assholes are after us. So, do you believe me now?”

“You wouldn’t lie about that,” Sejun pointed out. “As crazy as it sounds, I do believe you. You couldn’t fake the whole  _ oh-woe-is-me  _ act. You can’t make this whole shit up.”

“Fuck you,” Josh replied, but there was a smile on his face. 

“Nah, I’ll pass. Besides, it sounds like you have someone else in mind to do that with.” Sejun replied with a grin. 

Josh shot him a look. “I’m not -”

“You are,” came the insistent response. “I haven’t seen you light up like that in awhile. Just tell me one thing...are they worth it?”

Josh cast his thoughts back to the past few days. Despite all the shit he’s gone through, there was the one constant at his side. Almost immediately, his eyes - one electric blue and one a deep chocolate brown - flooded his mind. He could almost feel the phantom sensation of arms wrapped around him, a deep voice whispering sweet nothings in his ear.

“Sej,” Josh replied, looking into the camera. “They’re so much more.”

***

The battery drained really quickly, so Josh had to end the call with Sejun despite the fact that he wanted to keep talking more. He sorely missed his best friend, but thankfully, Vestell fashioned a charger for the device. Josh just needed for it to charge before using it again.

“Thank you,” he murmured to Vestell before pulling him into a hug. 

The surprised scientist hugged him back. “Anything to help you. At least we know it works now.”

“It does, doesn’t it?” Josh said with a grin as he pulled back. “I’m actually going home.”

Vestell observed him. “You don’t seem too happy about that.” 

“I don’t...I am, don’t get me wrong,” he quickly backtracked. “It’s just...I don’t know if I want to leave just yet.”

And Vestell understood. Despite the massive clusterfuck of the past few days, he could see how much closer Josh and Jus had gotten. Last night’s events also proved that their attraction for each other went far beyond simple infatuation. Vestell’s never seen Jus fall so hard and so fast.

“I know it’s hard,” Vestell began, putting a hand on Josh’s shoulder. “Talk to him, okay? It’s better if you two get to clear things out before you go.”

Josh nodded. “You mean, break things off?”

“Not necessarily. It’s wonderful that you two found each other, albeit it’s not during the best of circumstances,” Vestell replied. “But there are bigger things at stake. He knows this, and so do you. And, make the most of the time you have.” 

_ Make the most of the time you have.  _ Time was something precious, and it could never be replaced once it passed. And Josh did know that there was so much more at stake here. Vestell explained in no uncertain terms why time travel was such a touchy subject. The future of millions could be at stake, even if Josh still didn’t believe he had that much contribution in the wonderful world they live in now. Not going back could mean a series of events that could affect the lives of millions or even billions.

“Talk to him,” Vestell repeated, looking at him. 

“Yeah, I will.” 

***

Josh still hasn’t talked to Jus since he walked out of the dining room. 

And, it wasn’t for lack of trying. Ever since the  _ incident  _ as Josh dubbed it, it seemed like Jus was avoiding him for some reason. Josh didn’t want to play the role of the scorned lover, but it was getting frustrating when he would approach Jus, and the commander suddenly had something or other to do.

Thankfully, he was distracted by the fact that he had to call Sejun again to explain the plan. Now that he knew the phone worked, he could immediately dial Sejun’s number and the other would pick up.

“And is that all I have to do?” Sejun asked, voice uneasy. Josh could understand. Unlike Josh, Sejun was very much a stickler for rules, and sneaking into alpha levels was something he never imagined he’d be doing. 

“Yes, we just need the data,” Josh said, running through the process that he went through when he did the same thing. “When do you think you can get me the information?”

“Tonight,” Sejun promised. “I’ll wait until everyone’s gone home and try my luck.”

“Okay, I’ll call you back in five hours. Is that enough time?” Josh asked, and Sejun nodded. 

“You can count on me. We’re going to get you home,” Sejun repeated, and Josh gave a bittersweet smile at that.

“I can’t wait to see you all again,” Josh said. “I miss you all.”

“Let’s get you back here, hm? I still have to beat the shit out of you for scaring me like that.”

But despite the familiarity of hearing Sejun’s voice, despite the longing ache to see his friends and family back home, Josh knew his heart was torn. Half of it wanted to go home, to go back to familiar settings, and to see familiar people again.

The other half, though? He might be leaving it in the year 3020.

***

“You’re not talking to him,” were the first things Vestell said once he had Jus alone. 

“I don’t have time for this, Vestell,” Jus murmured tiredly but before he could side step, Vestell stood firm in front of him, crossing his arms.

“What’s going on?” Keane asked once he stepped into the scene.

“Your best friend,” Vestell spat. “Is being an obtuse asshole.”

“What’d you do?”

“Me?” Jus asked incredulously. “Why do you assume I did anything?”

“He’s not talking to Josh because he’s afraid.” Vestell pointed out. “Well, tell me that isn’t true,” he added at Jus’ glare.

“It’s none of your business,” Jus muttered, but Vestell was right. 

“Why don’t you talk to him?”

A million reasons crossed his mind, but he resolutely ditched all of them lest he anger Vestell further. 

“You’re being an idiot,” Vestell said, brushing past Jus, leaving him alone with Keane.

Keane looked at him, concern written on his features. He gets into Jus’ space, placing his hands on the man’s shoulders.

“Look, there’s probably nothing else I can say on the matter,” Keane began, making Justin look at him. “But Vestell is right. You have to talk to Josh.”

“I know I do,” Jus murmured quietly. “I just...it feels all too real if I do it, you know?”

“It’s worse if you leave things the way they are now,” Keane pointed out. 

He then walked past Jus, presumably to go to Vestell, but he paused and turned back.

“Don’t leave him out to dry. He deserves better, after all the shit he’s been put through the past few days.”

And with that, he walked into his and Vestell’s room and closed the door, leaving Jus alone with his thoughts.

***

**Somewhere in MM, 21:00 HH**

“What do you mean they got away?”

“Our men were subdued easily. We don’t know where they went, or where they’re hiding. The commander’s PAUS is untraceable.”

“Well, find them! I want that time jumper, and I want him now!”

“Yes, Captain. We’re going through all of our sources, and none of them have seen hide nor hair of the Commander.”

Romero sneered into the face of the guard. “Well, I suggest you look harder before I break you.”

“Yes, captain.”

He watched as the man scurried away. Romero sat back, crossing his arms as he glared at the image of the Commander.

“You slipped up this time, commander,” he sneered. “Now, everyone will see you for the real you, and when you’re rotting away in prison, they’ll be celebrating me.”

With him out of the way, Romero would finally -  _ finally -  _ claim what was rightfully his.

It was only a matter of time left, after all.

***

  
  


Jus found Josh lounging just a little outside the safe house, sat on the porch, staring up at the night sky.

With them being in the middle of a field, there was little light pollution in the area. Jus could clearly see the stars, twinkling brightly. 

He sat down next to Josh, who tensed up.

“Look,” he began, turning to Josh who seemed to be ignoring him. “Can we talk?”

“Don’t you have something or other to do?” Josh replied, still looking at the sky, but his voice betrayed his true feelings. 

Jus sighed. “I’m...I guess I’ll start with  _ I’m sorry.  _ Sorry for ignoring you. I just...I wasn’t in the right space to talk.”

He reached out to Josh’s hand, and surprisingly, the engineer didn’t move. Jus intertwined their fingers, moving closer. “I guess I panicked,” he began. “I suddenly realized that after everything that’s happened, you still have to go back to your time and...well…”

He trailed off, prompting Josh to look at him. 

“I guess I wanted to be selfish for once,” Jus continued. “To keep you here...see where this goes.” 

Josh still didn’t say anything, but he wasn’t glaring at Jus anymore, which was a good sign. 

“And I guess I thought that if I just didn’t acknowledge it - or you - then it’d hurt less when the time comes.”

“Well then, you’re a dumbass.”

Jus looked up to see Josh chuckling, shaking his head as he did so. 

“You think I’m not aware of that?” Josh asked him. “Shit, Jus, I’ve been an absolute wreck because I don’t know if I want to go home or stay here because to be frank, you’re one of the best things that’s ever happened to me.”

He paused, scooting closer to Jus so he could feel the warmth emanating from him. “I really like you, but you know better than I do that so much is at stake if I don’t go back. You said so yourself.”

“I guess starting something like this wasn’t the best idea, huh?” Jus asked him, and Josh squeezed his hand.

“It wasn’t the best idea, but that didn’t mean it was a mistake.” 

Jus took a deep breath, leaning in, and Josh met him halfway.

“Let’s make the most of our time, then,” Jus murmured, feeling Josh’s breath on his lips. 

“Let’s make it count,” Josh agreed before pressing their lips together.

Tomorrow would come, and inevitably, Josh would have to go back.

But Jus was going to savor every moment. He would cherish every second he could have with Josh, and he was going to make it count.

***

  
  


**Somewhere in MM, 01:45 HH**

“Captain, I come bearing good news.”

Romero looked up from his multiple screens, narrowing his eyes at the newcomer. “This better be good.”

“Our men have managed to pin down their location. It was only for a second, but they managed to triangulate their approximate position thanks to the security cameras on the bus. They could still be in the area a little further away.”

Romero grinned. “That’s the kind of news I like to hear.”

“Should we scare them again, captain?”

“No,” Romero replied after a beat. “The methods we’ve used so far were highly ineffective. Let’s use a more delicate approach.”

“What do you have in mind, captain?”

Romero looked at the screens in front of him. 

“Get the time jumper. That’ll lure the commander to us. He won’t be able to resist, especially since this could cost him his reputation and career.” 

“Yes, captain.”

The man left again, presumably to make plans to capture the time jumper. 

Romero grinned to himself. It seemed like things were looking up for him.

He just had to be a bit more patient. 

***

Josh called Sejun again the next day, and they finally managed to get the data they needed.

“That was the scariest fucking thing I’ve ever done,” Sejun said, out of breath after he rattled off the information to Josh. “This better goddamn work or else I’ve wasted hours of my life.”

Josh grinned. “You’re talking to the brightest mind of our generation. Of course it’ll work.”

“That, and he has me helping,” Vestell yelled over his shoulder. “Hello again, Sejun.”

“Hey, Vestell. Are you keeping this punk in line?” 

Josh made an offended noise, and Vestell took that opportunity to grab the phone. “I can assure you he’s being kept in line. My husband and I make sure of it.”

“Great,” Sejun replied, laughing at the look on Josh’s face. “But in all seriousness, thank you for taking care of him.”

“It was no problem at all,” Vestell replied, turning to look at Josh who was now engrossed in something that Vestell had installed in his makeshift lab. “He’s grown on us.”

“Yeah, he does that,” Sejun replied with a grin. “Well, I better go. I hope to see him soon.”

“You will,” Vestell promised. “Would you like to say goodbye?”

He handed the phone over to Josh, who immediately started a whole new conversation with Sejun. He took that opportunity to give them room and he walked up to the common area.

He slumped beside Keane on the couch, who immediately wrapped his arms around him.

“Long day?” Keane asked, pulling Vestell close. 

“Yeah.” He replied, leaning in and pressing their lips together. “It’s been a long week.”

“It has, hasn’t it?”

“Think they’ll be okay?” Vestell asked, and Keane hummed.

_ “They”  _ meaning Jus and Josh, who have used whatever time they had left to just enjoy each other’s presence. While Keane wasn’t too fond of walking in on them that one time, he could see just how much they cared for each other. 

“I think so,” Keane replied. “We don’t know what’ll happen when Josh goes back, but I’m sure they’ll make it through.”

Vestell nodded. “Let’s hope for the best.” 

And yeah, that’s all they can do at this point - hope for the best.

Because who knows what’ll happen if they don’t.

***

“And that should do it,” Vestell murmured once they finished the plans. Josh studied the blueprints - it was supposed to be a safe way to go back in time. They did the calculations multiple times, and they managed to pinpoint the exact moment Josh had to return in his time.

Josh grinned. “Thank you so much,” he said, giving Vestell a hi-five. 

“Well, we’re ready to give this a go tomorrow. We only have one shot at this, so let’s hope this works.”

“Knowing you, it’ll work perfectly,” Josh replied as he spun the blueprints around. “We covered all our bases. Let’s hope nothing else goes wrong.”

At that exact moment, Jus walked into the lab and Josh greeted him with a kiss. 

“How is everything?” Jus asked as he pulled away. 

“We’re getting there,” Vestell replied. “We’ll give it a go as soon as possible, so we have to get everything ready.”

Josh leaned against Jus’ side. It was a bittersweet moment, for sure. 

“I think I’ll just head out a bit for some fresh air.”

“Go,” Jus murmured with a smile. “Just make sure to stay close to the house, okay?”

“I will, don’t worry.”

***

In hindsight, Josh really should have listened when Jus told him not to stray too far from the safe house. 

Hindsight really was a bitch. 

Jus explained that the safe house was untraceable as long as they stayed within a certain mile radius of the home. But, he was getting cabin fever, being cooped up inside the home for a few days now, so he decided to venture out a bit and explore the surroundings.

There was grass as far as the eye could see, and he was glad that provinces remained somehow untainted by rapid urbanization. 

He took a deep breath of the crisp air, grinning up at the sky.

He surely didn’t expect something heavy to come down on his head, but he felt the crack, and before he knew it, he crumpled to the ground.

The last thing he heard before he completely lost consciousness was “the Captain has been looking for you.”

And well. Fuck.

***

Josh blinked his eyes open to see the sneering face of Captain Romero in front of him.

“Well, so glad you could join us, time jumper,” he snarled. 

He belatedly realized he was tied down with electric handcuffs again, but this time, he was gagged. He resisted against his hold, but there was no use.

“And now, we wait.”

If Josh could move, he’d have kicked Romero’s smarmy ass across the floor.  _ Fucker,  _ he thought as he glared at the man.

He just hopes Jus would be on his way. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep your knives to yourself, please.


	6. Lies and Deceit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jus, Keane, and Vestell set out to save Josh from the clutches of Romero. But, the rescue mission takes a turn that none of them expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY FUCK I HAVE NO IDEA ANYMORE
> 
> Things are getting so intense, and I'm actually really freaking excited at how events are turning out. I have set this at ten chapters already, and we're so close! There's still four chapters ahead, and I do hope you guys don't kill me too much.
> 
> So, enjoy, and stan SB19!

Justicen - or Jus, as he was affectionately called by most - was known for his efficiency as the commander of the Time Police force. He was skillful and incredibly good at his job. Many of his men lauded him for his amazing work as commander, turning the agency into the well-oiled machine that it is today. 

Rarely does he lose his temper. Rarely does an event cause him to break his unflappable nature. No one has ever really crossed the commander and lived to tell the tale. 

So, no one ever really thought of getting into the path of his wrath, lest they meet the business end of his gun. 

Only a fool would try. 

And there are plenty of fools. 

"When I find those fuckers," Jus seethed as he watched Vestell pull out every possible footage to track Josh down. "I will skin every single one of them, hang them by their feet, and slowly watch them bleed to death while I drink scotch."

"Okay, calm down," Keane muttered, pushing Jus back into his chair. "We'll find him."

Jus glared, watching the security footage that Vestell pulled from the nearby areas. Their location may be untraceable, but he wasn't a goddamn idiot to forget security measures such as cameras. 

The screen showed a few men come up behind Josh who then brought down a large plank on his head. There was no sound from the footage, but Jus could almost physically _feel_ the sickening crunch of the wood as it made contact with Josh before being thrown down to the grass next to it. 

_"How barbaric,"_ Jus thought sarcastically as they picked up Josh's limp body, not even bothering to hold him properly. 

"Rewind the clip," Jus then ordered, and Vestell rolled his eyes, flicking his finger again to repeat the 15-second video. 

"What are we looking for?" Vestell asked after the tenth time Jus asked him to repeat the footage. "We've looked at every angle, Jus. If there was a clue as to where Josh was taken, don't you think we would have seen it by now?" 

Vestell suddenly found himself being spun around in his chair, staring into the snarling face of Jus. In his periphery, he saw Keane immediately jump to his aid, but Vestell held out his hand, causing Keane to stop in his tracks. 

Keane seemed to hesitate, torn between following his husband and wanting to protect him, but he remained where he stood, watching the events unfold. Jus wouldn't hurt Vestell, would he? 

"We are not going to stop until I find the assholes that took Josh," Jus all but growled into Vestell’s face, whose features remained impassive, unmoving. "So until I'm satisfied, we are going to watch that clip over and over again, are we clear?" 

Vestell gave him a bored look, before he raised his eyebrows and sat up, pushing Jus back with a finger. "No, I don't think we are," Vestell replied coolly, causing Keane to wince, but Jus didn't bat an eye.

"You're not the only one worried about Josh," Vestell continued with a glare, standing to his full height. "If I may remind you, who do you think was working on a way to bring him home while you were too busy screwing him?" 

Jus stopped short, gritting his teeth. He couldn’t formulate a response to that. Vestell had a point. 

" _And,_ who was the one that worked on getting a fucking ancient phone to somehow work to reach through the _very fabric_ of time and space itself, just so he can contact his friend?" Vestell added, pushing Jus slightly. There was a considerable size difference, but Jus staggered back slightly. "And, may I remind you, _who sacrificed their home just to get this technology away from the wrong hands?!_ "

Vestell was up in Jus' face at this point as he yelled, glaring up at him. Jus glared back, but there was less heat when the weight of Vestell's words sank into him. He couldn't say anything back. Vestell was right after all. He had done a lot of work to help Josh, and what was Jus doing?

Vestell gave a humorless chuckle at the lack of response. "I thought so, so _shut up_ and let me do my goddamn job."

And with that, Vestell turned back to the screen, rewinding the clip for the eleventh time. 

Jus looked at Keane who frowned at him. Keane was obviously on Vestell's side, judging by the way he quickly made his way to Vestell and put a comforting arm around his shoulders. 

Silence reigned as they repeated the clip over and over again. Jus sighed, leaning against the wall, a muddle of thoughts in his mind. 

"You're right," he murmured quietly. Vestell gave no indication he heard, but Jus continued. "I'm sorry, I'm just…"

He gave a shuddering breath, sagging to the floor as he did so. 

"We're all worried," Keane piped up. "But you being all righteous anger and revenge won't get us anywhere."

"I know," Jus murmured, looking at Keane then at Vestell. "I guess my emotions got the best of me."

Keane regarded him carefully before understanding blossomed on his face. "I get it, man. If someone hurt Vestell, I probably would be on a rampage as well. But, you'll keep me in check, won't you?" 

Jus chuckled. "Yeah, I would."

"We're here to help, Jus," Vestell added with a sigh as he turned back to the man who was sitting on the floor. “We’re on the same team here. You asked us to help, and we will. So let's stop tearing into each other's throats and find those sorry sons of bitches,” he finished with a smirk. 

Jus returned the smirk before standing up and turning his attention back to the screen. 

Suddenly, Keane moved closer, a frown on his face. He squinted at the screen, causing Vestell and Jus to stop whatever it is they were doing and watch him closely. 

"What is it?" Jus asked, looking back at the screen then back at Keane. “What do you see?” 

"Look," Keane murmured, taking a deep breath as he pointed at the screen. "Is that what I think it is?" 

His finger was pointing at a blob on one of the men's jackets. Vestell immediately expanded the screen, zooming in on the find.

"No," Jus breathed out when they started to make out the symbol. "It can't…"

"Honey, can you enhance the image?" Keane asked Vestell, who immediately increased visibility. 

"Well shit," Vestell gasped. "Is that…?" 

"Yup," Keane replied, gritting his teeth. "And I have a feeling we know who's behind all this."

"I am going to fucking tear him apart limb from limb, that bastard." Jus added, growling at the screen, fingers squeezing the back of Vestell's chair. 

Vestell looked between the two. "Wait, hold up, you're not saying that _he's_ behind all this. I mean, he's not very bright, but surely he's not this asinine."

"Who else would it be? He's the only one pompous enough to actually have his symbol fucking embroidered. What an actual dumbass," Keane muttered, earning a chuckle from Jus. 

"Let's go," Jus then said, suiting up, Keane following his lead. "I think I know where Josh was taken."

On the screen, as clear as day, the symbol of captaincy stared back at them. 

* * *

Josh looked around him. He was obviously still tied up and gagged, unable to move a muscle aside from the ones on his face. He glared at Romero across the room, who didn't seem bothered one bit by Josh's death stares. 

"Look, I'll be straight with you," Romero muttered, crossing his arms, an evil grin on his face. "I didn't want to get you involved. Of course, what do you know about my history with the commander?" 

_"I know quite a bit,"_ Josh thought idly, rolling his eyes at the rhetorical question. Romero strutted about the place like a proud peacock, and Josh so badly wanted to just kick him in the nutsack for wasting his time.

“You were not supposed to get into the middle of all this,” Romero continued with a faux-sympathetic smile directed towards Josh. “But, beggars can't be choosers, after all. With you in the picture, I finally have enough leverage over the commander. After all this time, my plan is all coming together, and you…”

He trailed off, walking towards Josh, trailing a finger over his cheek. Josh resisted the urge to just vomit at the sensation. Romero was as greasy as his personality, and he did not want anything to do with this asshole.

“...my dear time jumper,” he continued, almost as if in awe. “You are my ticket into bringing him down.”

With that, he turned his back to Josh. “When he comes charging through those doors,” he said, pointing at them. “He won’t be expecting the little surprise I have for him.”

Josh gave him a confused look, watching as Romero punched in a few buttons, activating the security features of the room. Josh couldn’t see everything that took place, but he could hear the low thrum of power and electricity charging through the room. Whatever it was that Romero set up, Jus was going to walk right into it.

And Josh was helpless but to watch.

Romero grinned. “Well, I’ll bid you farewell for now, time jumper. Oh, and do me one favor when you see him again.”

_“I’m not going to do shit for you,”_ Josh growled in his mind, fixating his harshest glare on the captain. Romero simply chuckled. 

“Has anyone ever told you that you look like an angry rabbit when you glare?” He asked, and Josh wanted to punch him in the face, his fists clenching in his cuffs. “In any case,” Romero continued. “Ask the commander about you. He knows more about you than he lets on.”

And with that, he walked out the door, leaving Josh alone in the room.

_“What the fuck did that mean?”_ Josh wondered as he watched Romero leave. He spared no second thought, though, slowing down his breathing enough so that he could concentrate. 

Josh waited until he could no longer hear footsteps. He looked around to see if there were cameras around. There probably were going to be cameras, he idly thought, so he had to be discreet if he was going to actually pull this shit off. 

He studied the cuffs in front of him. Romero’s first mistake was cuffing him and leaving the handcuffs in front of him where he can see them. If he had even half a functioning brain cell, he would have tied Josh’s hands behind his back. 

The technology on the cuffs looked advanced, but Josh figured they worked like any other handcuff. He could sense a latch. It seemed the cuffs relied heavily on electrical surge going around it. If he could interrupt the flow, then he would be able to break the latch.

Now, how to do that? 

Josh studied his position. His legs were locked in place as well, so there was no use in trying to move away from the table. With a shake of his head, he shook his glasses loose, allowing them to clatter onto the table.

_“This would have been a lot easier if he didn’t gag me,”_ Josh thought, irritated, as he bowed his head and tried moving his glasses back towards him. He couldn’t see for the life of him, but even with his blurred vision, he could still see the flow of electricity around the cuffs in front of him.

If he could just get the lens through, then he’d have one hand free.

Just a little bit more.

And he’d also be going home.

* * *

“You’re not coming with us,” Keane was saying, and Vestell crossed his arms.

“Why, because I’ll just get in your way, is that it?” Vestell retorted, a glare on his face. “I’m not staying here, and I’m going to help Josh because that’s what I said I’ll do.”

“We’ll bring Josh back here, and you’ll be able to activate the time jump here,” Keane repeated. 

Jus rolled his eyes. “Look, we don’t have time for this! We have to go.”

“And I’m going with you,” Vestell said, daring Keane to say something. Keane rubbed his hand over his face in frustration.

“You’re not coming with us, please Vestell, go back into the house.”

“I said no!” Keane yelled. “I don’t think I can stand it if I lose you!”

Vestell stepped back at that. Keane took a deep breath, and Jus watched from the sideline at his two friends worked this out.

Keane took a step forward, gathering Vestell into his arms. “I nearly lost you in the fire,” he said, holding his husband close. Jus’ eyebrows shot up at that - Vestell did not mention anything about nearly dying.

He was going to throttle his friend later for keeping that a secret, but for now, he had to wait until Vestell and Keane sorted this through.

“I don’t think I can go through that again,” Keane added, holding Vestell. Vestell smiled at him.

“But I’m alright, aren’t I? I’m right here, and you know more than anyone that I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself,” he said, cupping Keane’s cheek. “I trust that you’ll take care of me, and you have to trust me as well.”

“Uh, guys?” Jus cut in, impatience in his voice. “Look, I love both of you, but can we please go now? Millions of lives depend on it.”

“Well, that settles it, I’m coming with,” Vestell announced, and Keane sighed.

“Right, but the moment bullets start flying, I’m going to hide you behind the nearest piece of furniture,” Keane muttered, pulling Vestell into a soft kiss. 

“Well, now that’s sorted, let’s get the move on,” Jus announced, revving up the engine in the flying car. “Vestell, you better hope the invisibility panels on this work.”

Vestell grinned. “Well, Jus, I’m about to blow your fucking brains out.”

* * *

Josh took a deep breath. He didn’t know how long it has been since Romero spoke with him, and to his surprise, he didn’t get any of his lackeys to watch over him. Mistake number two, he supposed.

He wondered where Jus was. He wondered if they already knew where he was, and knowing Vestell, he’d probably have his location pinned within seconds. They were probably on their way, and while he waited, he could try the glasses thing again. 

He was so close to actually doing something. The difficulty lay in the fact that he could not move his hands or feet, nor could he actually bite with the gag still in his mouth. Romero was one kinky motherfucker if he actually had a gag handy to place on Josh to keep him quiet.

He tried a lot of things to get the glasses to where he needed them to be. There was a small opening in the cuffs that was conveniently a little wider than the width of his lens, and if he could just drop his glasses in that small gap, he’d be able to cut off the power to one of the cuffs.

He nosed his glasses around, breaking into a sweat at the effort it took to maneuver it on the table. It seemed like a never-ending ordeal of trial and error where he would try picking it up with the tip of his nose and it would inevitably slide off.

Josh lay his head against the cool metal table in front of him. He’d been at this for God knows how long, and if he wasn’t going to get out, he probably never will.

He cast his mind back to what Romero said before he left, unable to shake the words that seemed to start dancing in his mind. 

_“Ask the commander about you. He knows more about you than he lets on.”_

What the hell did he mean by that? If Jus knew something about him, he probably wasn’t at liberty to say, seeing as his whole job was to protect the timeline. If Jus felt withholding secrets from him would keep the timeline safe, then who was Josh to actually question him on it? He wasn’t the expert on time after all.

But, still, the words nagged at him. If Romero said that specifically, then it meant that he also knew something. 

He would need to talk to Jus when he got the chance.

But he had to get out of here first.

Slowly, he nosed his glasses again, carefully balancing them on the tip of his nose, and with a huff, he dropped them onto the cuffs.

There was a noise of something powering down, and even with his shit eyesight, he could see that the lens made its way in between the tiny gap, cutting off the power. He heard a latch open, and Josh grinned when he could wiggle his hand free.

For a brief moment, he sighed in relief. He shook his hand clear of the nerves before he tried the same thing with the other cuff.

There was a quiet _snick_ of the latch, and Josh found himself free from the restraints. He took the gag off with great difficulty - the little bastard was tied tightly around his head - before he slowly moved, trying his utmost not to make a sound as he reached down and tried to free his feet. Jus would come soon, he reckoned, sighing when he felt the blood circulate around his feet more freely. 

But until then, Josh had to survive.

He just didn’t know where to start.

* * *

“Are you not going to stop him, captain?”

Romero studied the time jumper as he slowly got himself out of his restraints. He was very bright, no doubt about that. Not everybody could understand the mechanisms of the technologically advanced restraints they put on him.

“No,” he replied, taking a deep breath. “I think we may find some use for him after all.” 

On the screen, he watched the time jumper look around the room, probably for a way to escape.

“He won’t get very far,” Romero reasoned, sitting back in his chair. “Revenge will be oh so sweet. With the time jumper in our midst, and our very commander the one who not only allowed him to escape, but also abetted it, Jus will be imprisoned faster than they can make me commander.”

He took a deep breath, looking at the guard that stood next to him. “In just a few more hours, finally - _finally -_ I will have what I want. And you will all be rewarded handsomely for this.” 

He then turned back to the screen, chuckling as the jumper tried to pry the doors open, to no avail. The sooner the commander would arrive, the sooner Romero would be able to get the ball rolling on this whole plan of his.

* * *

Jus, Vestell, and Keane looked up at the department building in front of them. Jus fondly remembers, as a kid, wanting to work for this very institution. He worked his ass off to get to this position, and the day he became commander was one of the best days of his life.

And now, here he was, about to dismantle the very institution that he so strongly believed in. 

“You think he’s in here?” Keane asked as they parked the car a bit further away, with enough of a vantage point of the department.

“Where else could he be?” Jus asked, looking at the building. “Romero’s entire life also revolved around the force. I wouldn’t put it past him to actually bring Josh here, back to where it all began.”

“I just don’t get what Romero is planning,” Vestell chimed in. “He’s obviously had it out for you, Jus, but what the hell is he getting himself into?”

“I don’t know for sure,” Jus replied with a sigh. “I just hope I can get to Josh before it’s too late.”

“You will,” Vestell said quietly after a pregnant silence. “And he’s a strong guy. He’s gotta be, knowing what he’ll be able to accomplish in his future.”

And Jus suddenly remembered every single reason why they had to bring Josh back to where he came from. As it stood, their very existence was at stake. They had to fix the rip in the fabric of time and space, to bring the anachronism back to where he came from. Josh didn’t know it yet, but his impact on their world - their way of life - was phenomenal. Everything he did was for the betterment of their society, and millions of lives depended on Josh.

And Jus was one of those millions.

“Alright, we’ll scope the place out,” Keane was saying, causing Jus to snap out of his reverie. “What’s our plan?”

Vestell took a deep breath. “I need to set up the time jump. I have the formula Josh and I worked on, and hopefully, our calculation is correct and we’ll bring Josh back to the correct time.”

“Wait wait, hold up,” Jus cut in, causing Vestell to raise an eyebrow at him. “You’re not even sure if this will work?”

“We don’t have time to test it,” Vestell pointed out. “But, we worked out the formula. With the information Sejun gave us, Josh and I worked it out to the exact decimal point. This will work. It has to.”

There was an air of resignation in Vestell’s voice, as if the events of the past week came crashing down on him. Jus could relate. They were all tired, and the sooner they can get Josh back, the sooner they can hopefully return to normal.

Or as normal as it can be.

“Okay, so what’s our plan?” Jus finally asked, and Vestell smiled at him.

“I will need access to the main time chamber,” Vestell told Keane, who nodded. “I can set the jump there, and if we can take Josh to the chamber, then he’ll be able to go home.”

“So we split up then. Jus will look for Josh, and I’ll go with you as you set up the jump,” Keane said as if the plan really was that simple.

Jus nodded. “Bring Josh to the time chamber,” he repeated, mostly to himself. “Easy.”

“Well then, what the hell are we waiting for? Let’s go save your man,” Keane said with a grin, and Jus ignored the pang in his chest.

Well, it was time to get his game face on.

* * *

Josh felt like he was in the middle of a goddamn maze. He didn’t know where he was going, and he sure as shit wasn’t sure where he would end up.

Footsteps echoed across the hall, and he quickly hid behind one of the large plants displayed in the hallways. The men walked through, not realizing there was a human hiding behind the potted ficus, and Josh let out a relieved sigh. The place was lit very brightly, and the fact they used marble flooring made it a lot easier for Josh to slip through without making a sound. 

“Okay,” he whispered mostly to himself as he reached a hallway that branched off into two separate paths. “Left or right?”

Making a quick decision, he darted down the hallway on the left and immediately regretted it the moment he heard voices coming.

In a panic, Josh opened the closest door to him and snuck inside, gently closing it just as the group passed. Through the frosted glass, he could see the group stop just outside the door, and he waited with bated breath for them to move.

“Did you hear that?” Someone asked. “It’s like someone opened the door to the archives room.”

“You’re probably just hearing things, Sanson,” someone else chimed in. “Come on, I’m hungry.”

“I was sure I heard something!”

Josh’s eyes widened as the shadows approached the door. He flattened himself against the adjacent wall, hoping against hope that they wouldn't open it.

“Leave it, Sanson,” a female voice this time said. “If Cruz doesn’t get his lunch, you’ll have to deal with him all day.”

Soon enough, the voices faded away into the distance, and Josh breathed a sigh of relief.

He turned around, now knowing that he was in the archives room, only to find a very large picture of himself up on the wall.

“What the fuck?” He couldn’t help but yell, staggering back at the sight. He looked about twenty years older - like he used a goddamn FaceApp filter to age his features - but there was no denying that he was looking at himself.

In the picture, he was wearing a lab coat over a suit and tie ensemble. There were gray streaks in his hair, giving him a salt-and-pepper look. Josh never wondered what he would look like in twenty years, but being faced with a very realistic likeness made him question his own mortality. 

He approached the frame, and slowly, he saw a lot of other plaques on display, all with his name engraved. There were yellowing newspaper clippings, all framed and carefully preserved. Along with the old, some more modern inventions were on display, all attributed to him. His name was across headlines, and Josh couldn’t believe his eyes. 

He turned back to the portrait, looking down at the plaque beneath his picture, and he gasped at what he read:

**Dr. Josh Cullen Santos**

**MEng, MMath, PhD, D.Eng**

**Founder**

_“What the actual fuck?!”_

* * *

Jus heard the scream, and he immediately ran towards the source of the noise, recognizing Josh’s voice anywhere. 

He found himself outside the archives, and dread flooded over him. If Josh found himself in the archives, then that would mean…

He wrenched the door open, and sure enough, he saw Josh standing there in the middle, staring up at a giant portrait of his aged self.

“Josh?” He called out tentatively, prompting the engineer to whirl around.

Josh looked like a right mess. His hair was sticking up, and there was complete bewilderment on his face. 

“Look,” Jus began. “I know you’re confused…”

“You have no goddamn idea how I’m feeling right now,” Josh hissed, eyes wide in disbelief. 

Jus winced. “This wasn’t how I wanted you to find out.”

“So you were just going to keep me in the dark about all of this?” Josh almost yelled, causing Jus to quickly close the door behind them and walk forward.

“I didn’t think it mattered!” Jus whispered back, moving closer, but his heart broke when Josh took a step back. “Josh, you have to understand...you aren’t...all of this yet.” He said, waving his arms around. “I didn’t know what would have happened if I told you. It could affect the very future itself.”

Josh shook his head. “No, that’s not what I’m worried about.”

Jus stared at him, confused. “Well, then, what are you talking about?”

“You talked about the founder a lot,” Josh began, and Jus’ eyes grew wide. “You mentioned how he was your hero, and now...now that I know that I _am_ him...was any of that real?”

The realization dropped on Jus like a ton of bricks. 

“Josh,” he began, taking a step forward, and sighing when Josh took another step back.

“Did you even really like me? Or was all of that just because I was this _hero,”_ Josh spat out the word like it was venom. “This _hero_ that you worshipped all your life?”

Jus sighed. “Look, I was definitely excited to meet you. That’s not a lie. You...I mean - the founder - was my hero after all, but...that’s not you. Not yet.”

He took a deep breath, willing himself to look at Josh. “Please, Josh, believe me. I fell in love with you, and I am in love with who you are now...not with the idea of who you could be.”

The silence was unbearable. Josh didn’t know if he could handle one bombshell after another. Was this what Romero told him to ask Jus? 

“Then why hide this from me?” Josh asked him. “You didn’t think I deserved to know as well?”

“I wanted to tell you...I wanted to tell you so badly,” Jus replied. “But, believe me when I say I did this for your own protection and for ours as well. Telling you about all of this...who knows what would have happened when you went back?”

Jus shook his head, taking a step forward. “Please, believe me when I say that I had no malicious intent with keeping this from you. My duty is to protect the timeline, and I’m doing all I can to that extent.”

They then stood there, looking at each other, not willing to move one bit. This was a lot of information to digest, and Josh didn’t know which point to focus on. 

“Am I really going to be that important?” He finally asked, voice quiet, and Jus wouldn’t have heard it if he wasn’t listening closely.

He nodded in response. “You will be, and even more. You have no idea how many lives you’ve changed, but I can’t say anymore. Please, don’t make me say more. I don’t know what will happen if I do.”

There were tears in the commander’s eyes as he all but begged. 

“Fine, but this isn’t over,” Josh told him, breaking at the sight of Jus looking very small even as he stood to his full height. “You still lied to me.”

“And I’m sorry,” Jus said, voice cracking. “But I can’t say anymore.”

Josh was about to reply when the door behind them flew open and in walked Romero with a group that Jus recognized was the group of directors.

“So, as you can see,” Romero sneered. “The commander is aiding the _time jumper_ and giving him information about our time.”

“Well, Romero, we’re glad you caught him just in the nick of time,” one of the members of the board said, and Romero chuckled at the unintentional pun. 

“Wait, wait,” Jus called out, standing in front of Josh, shielding him from the board. “Please let me explain.”

“You can explain when you’re behind bars, commander,” Romero said with an evil grin. “You have been found breaking not only Time Police protocol, but also several laws.”

“Captain Romero is right,” one of the board members chimed in, though he looked like he didn’t want to be anywhere but here. “I’m sorry, Justicen, but we’re going to have to take you in, as well as the time jumper.”

“Look, this isn’t what it looks like!” Jus insisted. 

“Commander, if you just come with us quietly, we’re not here for a fight,” another one said. “But, we’re not afraid to get physical if we need to.”

Jus paused, studying the environment. They weren’t trapped - they left the door wide fucking open, and Josh could escape if he needed to.

“Okay, listen,” he murmured, voice dropping low so that only Josh could hear. “I’m going to distract them...you get out.”

Josh’s eyes widened at that, and he gawked even more when Jus sprang into action, first clocking Romero in the head, causing him to crumple like a piece of tissue paper, before engaging in an all out brawl.

“Josh, go!” He yelled in the midst of the fray, gesturing to the open door. “Go to the time chamber! Vestell and Keane are there, waiting for you!” 

Without any further prompting, Josh slipped through and made his way to the door and slipped out. 

On the floor, Romero growled, bringing his PAUS to his lips.

“Raise alert level five,” he groaned, his voice echoing around the building, and the alarms to ring. “We have a time jumper on the loose in the department.” 

Josh panicked, looking around as the alarms blared throughout the hallway. He continued running, not caring where he ended up, Jus’ instructions echoing in his mind. 

_Time chamber...he had to find the fucking time chamber!_

All of a sudden, about a dozen armed policemen started coming out of nowhere, headed for him. 

“Oh shit!” Josh exclaimed as he ran the opposite direction, running for his life. 

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah.
> 
> The whole setup by Romero was obviously a fluke since Josh wouldn't have been able to get away that easily. 
> 
> This whole story is coming to its climax, and i cannot believe how much I'm really loving these characters. They are so close to my heart already. I guess if you guys have any questions about what happened, just let me know. I'm so excited about this, and we're almost there.
> 
> Thank you, by the way, for coming along the ride with the commander and his anachronistic engineer. I love you guys, so much <3


	7. Our promising lives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Josh to return.

Vestell has been in the department’s main time chamber for a total of four times in his entire life. The first time was when he was doing research for his undergraduate thesis, and the commander then had kindly given him a rundown of how the machine worked. 

The second time he visited the time chamber, it was purely by accident. He had already been dating Keane at that point, and looking for him in the building took a turn when he found himself back in the chamber. People were currently running tests at that time, and Vestell had muttered a hasty apology before leaving and going back to his search for his then-boyfriend.

The third time he visited the chamber was on a request when Jus became commander. The first thing he did upon receiving the title was to ensure that the time chamber was still working as it should and up to the standard. Jus put so much trust into him when he asked Vestell, and Vestell worked night and day to make sure that the time chamber was working well.

This was the fourth time he visited the chamber. Keane had knocked out the guards surrounding the place and stood by the door to watch his back. He quickly activated the main panels, fingers rapidly moving through the various keys, entering the formulas and calculations he, Josh, and Sejun had worked incredibly hard on. To an untrained eye, it looked like a random combination of letters and numbers, but as each digit fell into place, Vestell knew, without a shadow of doubt, that this would work as intended.

All they had to do now was to get Josh into the chamber and initiate the jump.

“What the hell is that noise?” Keane asked, and Vestell paused to listen. Outside the room, they could hear the distant stomp of boots. In short succession, the alarm started to blare around them, and Vestell couldn’t help but drop to the floor and cringe at the noise.

“Fuck, that’s an alert level 5!” Keane yelled over the noise, and he growled when Romero’s voice came over the speakers with _“We have a time jumper on the loose in the department.”_

“They’re after Josh!” Vestell pointed out. He ran over to Keane who was craning his neck to see what was happening outside the doors of the chamber. “You need to help him!”

Keane whipped his head around to stare at Vestell incredulously. “Are you crazy? I’m not leaving you alone here!”

“He needs your help more than I do!” Vestell yelled back. “Go, I can take care of myself! Besides, I’m not yet done with the sequence.”

“I’m staying here, Vestell,” Keane grit out. “If you think for one second I’m going to leave you here with no protection, you’re sorely mistaken! I promised when we got married that I’m going to protect you within an inch of my life, and I’m keen on keeping that promise!”

Vestell rolled his eyes before grabbing Keane by the collar and pulling him in. To Keane’s utter surprise, Vestell’s lips slotted over his, and he couldn’t help but moan into the kiss. When the scientist pulled back, breathing heavily, Keane could barely form a coherent thought.

“I love you, you big idiot,” Vestell murmured, their lips barely touching. “But I’m going to cease to exist as will you if we don’t complete what we set out to do.”

Keane couldn’t help but breathe out heavily. “I don’t wanna lose you,” he said, voice cracking. “Please…”

Vestell smiled at him. “If we do this right, you won’t. Honey, I promise that I will not let myself run headfirst into danger. You taught me more than enough. I can handle this. You go and help Josh.”

Keane hesitated for a hot second before pressing their lips again, seeking every bit of reassurance from his love in that one gesture. Vestell kissed back before they pulled away again, foreheads touching.

“You come back to me in one piece, okay?” Keane muttered, and Vestell nodded with a laugh.

“As long as you promise me the same.”

Keane nodded before he pressed one more kiss on Vestell’s lips. He swung the door open and jumped immediately into the fray.

Vestell took a deep breath before he turned back to the machine in the middle of the room. From his calculations, he had approximately 10.45 minutes to complete the sequence, and he still had about a hundred lines of calculations and formulas to lay down.

He cracked his knuckles - time to get to work. 

* * *

“Come on, Romero, this is between you and me. You don’t have to drag him into whatever it is you’re planning,” Jus said, gritting his teeth as he and Romero circled each other. He felt slightly guilty that he single-handedly knocked out the board of directors - they had no fight training whatsoever, they were just the board - but he didn’t need the extra stress.

“Oh, but I didn’t drag him into anything,” came the response. “I distinctly remember that you pulled him into our world when he was supposed to be here. Do you even realize how much damage you could have caused the timeline?”

“I was helping him to go back if you’re so interested in knowing,” Jus replied, eyes narrowed. 

Romero shook his head. “Helping him go back? That’s a laugh. Then it was probably helpful that you slept with him too, was it not?”

Jus stilled at that. How the fuck did he-

“How did I know? You forget I have eyes everywhere, _commander._ And the moment you slept with him, I knew from that moment on that you were aiding and abetting his escape. He’s got you wrapped around his little finger, doesn’t he?”

Jus bared his teeth. “You’re bluffing. You don’t know shit.”

“Am I, though? I couldn’t imagine you, the ever unflappable commander Jus, would stoop so low as to sleep with that sl- “

Romero barely got the last word out before Jus roundhouse kicked him in the head, sending him flying down the halls. 

“You have no right to speak about him like that,” Jus growled, stomping forward and picking up Romero by the collar. 

“You’re very sensitive about him, aren’t you?” Romero asked with a grin, and he took Jus by surprise when he reached into his pocket with his one free hand and stabbed a taser in his abdomen. Jus dropped him in shock, twitching from the flow of electricity that surged through him. Romero took the moment to kick him in the chest, sending Jus staggering back.

“You stole what was rightfully mine!” Romero growled as he charged forward, waving the taser menacingly. “And now that I’m about to get it, you will feel every bit of suffering that you put me through.”

Jus breathed heavily, moving back as Romero approached. “I worked hard to get to where I am, Romero. I suppose I can’t say the same for you, can I?”

“You and I both know that I deserve that title you're so easily slinging into the mud!"

Jus stopped short. "Is this all because I became commander and not you all those years ago?" 

Romero chuckled, standing to his full height. "Partly. But, do you think I'm capable of holding such a petty grudge? No, commander, this goes beyond that. No longer will I be humiliated by you! I will finally show the world your true colors and how stupid they were to trust your leadership!" 

He then lunged forward, taking advantage of Jus' brief incapacitation. He grabbed his hair and got up in his face. “You’re finally going to get your just desserts, commander, so say _goodnight_!”

Jus’ eyes widened when Romero brought the taser close to him again. He braced himself, preparing for the surge of electricity through him, when he heard a loud _thud._

Romero suddenly dropped like a sack of potatoes on top of him, and Jus immediately pushed him aside. 

He looked up, stunned when he saw Josh standing above Romero, breathing heavily, fists clenched. 

"He's a piece of work, isn't he?" Josh asked Jus as Romero was shoved to the side by Jus. "That's for kidnapping me you piece of shit," he spat out. 

Jus got up on shaky feet, still feeling the effects of the taser. Josh immediately was at his side, helping him to stand up. 

"Where did you come from?" Jus asked incredulously. "I thought I told you to go find Vestell and Keane"

"Oh I found Keane," Josh said with a manic grin. "Asshole's taking on a group of armed men by himself and winning. He told me to go get you."

Jus' eyes widened. "I'm sorry, what?!"

* * *

**_10 minutes earlier_ **

"Josh, heads up!" 

Josh looked up just in time to see Keane swing through, landing next to him. He cocked his gun, and the group closing in on them paused, wary. 

"Okay, what do we do?" Josh asked, moving back until he and Keane were back to back. 

Keane suddenly blurred into motion, and Josh watched, gobsmacked, as Keane slowly and methodically went through the group, knocking them back like he was a lawnmower going through tall blades of grass. 

It was like watching a choreographed dance. Keane moved smoothly, a work of art in battle. His movements were precise and accurate, hitting his mark with each strike. The armed guards went down easily, and soon enough, limp bodies littered the hallway, with Keane standing at the very end. 

"Holy shit!" Josh exclaimed, causing Keane to laugh. 

"They don't call me the best fighter in the force for nothing," Keane said, wiping a bit of blood from his face. "Go find Vestell - time chamber is in the bottom levels. I'll take care of these assholes."

As he said that, more armed guards started coming in, and Keane cocked his gun. 

He stared at Josh, and if Josh weren't completely gone for Jus, he might have found Keane incredibly attractive. 

At Keane's urging, Josh immediately headed down the hall where he last saw Jus. Sure enough, he saw him wrestling with Romero in the hallway. 

Romero, he realized, was about to electrocute Jus again. In a split second decision - and he really didn't know where he got the balls to do it - he rushed forward and kicked him at the side of the head. 

To his utter surprise, Romero dropped - probably a result of him getting hit twice in the head at this point - and he turned to Jus with heavy breaths. 

"He's a piece of work, isn't he?"

* * *

"...And that's where we are now." Josh finished as they made their way through the winding hallways. Jus was more or less still shaking from the electrical surge, but fortunately, Josh didn’t need to support his entire weight.

There was the sound of fighting coming from another hallway, and Jus craned his head in that direction. He paused, causing Josh to stop as well.

“Look,” he began, shaking out the electrical charges still flowing through his body. “I’ll go help Keane, you go to Vestell now. You know where the time chamber is?”

“Lower level, Keane said,” came the response. “Wait, are you sure?”

Jus nodded. “I can take care of myself. You go find Vestell.”

Josh hesitated slightly, and when Jus saw the worry in his eyes, he leaned forward and slotted his lips over Josh’s, kissing him softly before pulling away with a soft _smack,_ Josh chasing after his lips. 

“I’ll be fine,” Jus murmured, cocking his gun as he did so. “I’ll see you there.”

Josh nodded, darting past Jus to head to the lower chambers. Jus watched him walk away before he called out his name.

“Hey, Josh?”

Josh skidded to a halt, turning back to Jus with a questioning look in his eyes.

“I love you,” Jus said, and he couldn’t help but grin at the smile that bloomed on Josh’s face.

“I love you, too,” Josh responded softly before turning back around, running towards the lower levels.

Jus turned to the commotion, and he smirked at Keane taking on the group by himself. He didn’t look too overwhelmed, but Jus swung into the middle of the group. If Keane was surprised at his appearance, he didn’t show it.

“Alright, let’s do this, old-school,” Keane muttered, and Jus chuckled.

“Just like the good ‘ole days, I suppose,” he sighed, getting ready to fight as the group closed in on them. “Let’s show these fuckers how we used to do it back in the academy.”

Keane flashed him a sadistic grin, and with a yell, they started to fight back.

* * *

True enough, Josh found Vestell in front of a frankly giant screen, typing away the formula they had worked so hard on. 

He watched the numbers flash across the screen at an almost inhumane speed, but to his surprise, Vestell did not miss anything. He was as thorough as he possibly could be, looking over every line if the movement of his head was anything to go by. 

“Holy shit,” he murmured, causing Vestell to look behind him in surprise.

“Ah, Josh! You’re here!” He exclaimed, pausing the sequence. “Come in, quick, and close the door behind you.”

Josh did as he was told before he walked towards Vestell, awe in his eyes as the machine whirled to life. The sequence was still incomplete, but there would be enough time for Vestell to input the rest of it. 

Hopefully.

“I’m just about to enter the last few lines of the sequence,” Vestell said with an excited but somewhat manic grin. “We’re almost on our way to getting you home.”

“Damn finally,” Josh replied, heaving a sigh. “I think I’ve had enough excitement for one lifetime.”

He watched as Vestell entered the last lines, precision with every move he made, and Josh gasped as power entered the machine. He could almost see the way the electricity moved throughout the device, like a dance of lights that illuminated the chamber around them. In the center of it all was a platform where Josh presumed he would stand once he was going to be sent back.

“Well, that’s the last of it,” Vestell muttered, turning to Josh. “Are they still out there?”

Josh nodded. “Yeah, I think they’re still distracting the guards.”

Vestell breathed out, running a hand through his hair. He turned his attention back to Josh, who stood up straight. 

“What?” Josh asked. 

“Look, I have to tell you something,” Vestell murmured, moving closer. “I wasn’t completely forthright with you.”

“What do you mean?” Josh asked, crossing his arms. 

“There are things that we haven’t told you, for the safety of the timeline of course,” Vestell said, taking a deep breath as he did so. “One of those things is that you’re actually -”

“I’m actually the Founder?” Josh finished for him, cutting Vestell off. 

“I- well, yes, actually but…” Vestell stammered. “How did you know?”

“I saw the archives,” Josh replied, and Vestell winced. 

“That must have been some trip, huh?” The scientist said with a sad smile. “We didn’t mean for you to find out that way. Well, we honestly didn’t mean for you to find out at all. You have to understand, we needed to protect the timeline.”

“Yeah I get that, but how exactly could that affect the timeline?” Josh asked, listening to the steady thrum of the machine behind them. 

Vestell hesitated. “I’m not sure, really. There’s still a lot of other variables that we haven’t considered because we don’t exactly know what will happen. I’m not sure if taking you back to your time will wipe out your memory of this future or retain it.”

“Oh, wow, I…” Josh stopped, a million questions suddenly springing through his mind. 

There was a chance. A chance that he wouldn’t remember what happened at all. He would forget the future - forget that Vestell and Keane ever existed - forget the several strides humanity has made in the millennium that passed. 

He would forget the adventures he’s had in the past week, forget all the hardship he went through.

And he’d forget about Jus.

_He didn’t want to forget about Jus._

“There’s also the flipside of what will happen here,” Vestell said, bringing Josh’s attention back to him. “I’ve done a bit more research while you were...well...occupied…”

“Okay…” Josh trailed off, feeling a blush rise up his cheeks at what Vestell was insinuating.

“Well, remember when I told you about the butterfly effect?”

Josh did remember. It was one of the very first conversations he had with Vestell, really. 

> _"Time travel is a bit complex. Imagine time moving in a linear fashion - everything we do at a certain point causes a chain reaction and determines the future. Have you heard of the Butterfly Effect?"_
> 
> _"Yeah...flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway across the world?" Josh replied, and Vestell smiled at him._
> 
> _"I'm surprised you remember the exact quote, but yes, the butterfly effect: the smallest or most minute choices we make can have an effect on the future.”_

  
  


He nodded, and Vestell continued.

“Well, one of the effects of bringing you back to the exact second you left is well...it will appear as if you never left,” Vestell explained, allowing the weight of his words to settle in.

Josh’s breath got caught in his throat. “Wait, what does that mean?”

“Well, there’s a lot of things, but ultimately, if you technically never left your time,” Vestell began, wringing his fingers. “Then you never arrived here in our time. None of what happened in the past week would have occurred. The timeline would snap back like a rubber band.”

The implications of that were too numerous to consider, and Josh leaned back against the railing, letting the information wash over him. 

“I don’t know how that will affect us,” Vestell proceeded to explain. “We could go back to what our lives were like mere days ago, having no recollection of whatever the past week was because well, without you, none of it really happened.”

“So you wouldn’t remember?” Josh asked, voice breaking, and Vestell shook his head.

“Probably not,” he replied. “But as I said, that’s just a possibility at this point. Who knows what’ll happen when time is involved?”

The events of last week suddenly played through his mind. Vestell had a point - who knows what’ll happen when time is involved? There was a slim chance that on both ends of the time jump, all parties would forget what happened, thus preserving the natural flow of events. Last week would just be another anomaly in the timeline, ceasing to exist.

One part of Josh wanted to be selfish. He wanted to hold onto these memories as much as possible, to keep them close to him. If he could do it without destroying the rest of the timeline, then he gladly would have stayed. 

With Jus.

“Does he know?” Josh asked, and Vestell shook his head, knowing full well who _he_ was.

“I didn’t tell him,” Vestell admitted, a sad smile on his face. “I fear that if I did, he’d probably do something to keep it from happening. He’s completely gone for you, you know that right?”

> _“I love you,”_

Those words echoed around Josh’s mind. He remembered how Jus smiled when he said them back, how his eyes lit up at his response. Falling in love with Jus was almost as easy as breathing, and they slotted into place together like missing puzzle pieces. It just hurt so bad when he realized that it was a life that he could never have, not when the future apparently relied on him. 

“You need me to go back, right, being the _founder_ and all?” Josh asked, and Vestell hesitated before nodding.

“I’m afraid so.”

“What if I do go back, and well, I do something that affects your future now?” Josh asked. “Look, days ago when I didn’t know yet, it didn’t seem all that bad, but…”

“It’s overwhelming, isn’t it, to realize just how much you matter to a lot of people,” Vestell said, smiling sadly at him. “You matter to everyone in this future, not just us. We were just lucky that we got to know you.”

“Yeah, I guess I am very overwhelmed,” Josh replied, running a hand through his already unruly hair. “What if I fuck it up?”

“Look, the future isn’t really set in stone,” Vestell told him. “We don’t know what’ll happen. Technically, we don’t exist yet in your time. Your choices will determine how the future unfolds.”

Vestell then moved closer, placing his hands on Josh’s shoulders, causing the engineer to look up at him. “Whatever you do, don’t forget how smart you are. You are an innovator. You are one of the brightest minds of your generation, and you can do whatever it is you set yourself out to do. Don’t worry about us, okay?”

“How can I not?” Josh asked, a wry grin on his face. “You guys have become so important to me, I’ll find it hard not to care.”

“I’m sure you’ll have other more important things to worry about that we’ll fade into the recesses of your gray matter.”

Josh shook his head. “Nah, I don’t think so.” 

All of a sudden, the doors opened, causing both Vestell and Josh to look up. They grinned at the sight of Keane and Jus walking in, looking a little ruffled up, but otherwise grinning like madmen.

“Holy shit did you see that stunt I pulled?” Keane was bragging, Jus shaking his head in laughter. 

“I haven’t seen that move in years, how the hell do you still know how to do that?”

“It’s pure skill, baby,” came the cocky response. At that point, Vestell cleared his throat, causing the two to look up at him. 

At the sight of Josh, Jus’ eyes softened, and he approached. Behind them, Vestell greeted Keane in a relieved hug. 

“Well,” Jus began, grinning at him. “I guess this is it, huh?” 

_It_ being the fact that Josh was about to go home. In a few more minutes, he’d step through, letting time and space warp around himself to bring him back to his time.

He’d get to see his family again.

He’d get to see Sejun again.

He’d get another chance to prove himself.

He gently took Jus’ hands in his. “Thank you for aiding and abetting my escape.”

Jus laughed, their fingers intertwining.

“I knew this day would come,” Jus said, looking up. “I just thought...I thought that I could have a bit longer with you.”

“I know, same here. If I figure out a way to freeze time, I’ll be sure to let you know,” Josh replied with a grin.

He then paused, worrying his lower lip with his teeth. How do you say goodbye to someone you’ve known for a total of five days, but somehow they’ve become part of your world?

“I’m glad I met you,” Jus suddenly said, moving closer. “The real you, not the hero that I grew up with. No matter how this ends, I’ll be incredibly happy that I got to know you more. We might not...be lucky enough to stay together, but know that you are one of the best things to ever happen to me.”

“As are you,” Josh replied, bringing up Jus’ hand and kissing his knuckles. “Thank you for taking care of me, for making me believe that I can do more and be more than I am. I...I love you.”

Jus pressed their lips together, and no matter how many times they kissed, it somehow always was going to feel like the first time.

“Take care of yourself, okay?” Josh murmured once they pulled away, cupping Jus’ cheek. “I hope nothing too bad happens here.”

“We’ll be fine, just make sure you get back safely,” Jus replied, and after a few more seconds, they stepped back, smiling at each other.

Keane then approached after detaching himself from Vestell’s side and pulled Josh into a hug. “Hey, you kill it back there, okay? We’ll miss you a big deal.”

Josh returned the hug, grinning as Keane pulled away. “You too, man. I wish you and Vestell more happy years to come.” 

He then turned back to Jus and pulled him into one more kiss, their hands gripping each other’s tightly, unwilling to let go. 

“Okay, you ready?” Vestell called out, and Josh took a deep breath as he pulled away, letting go of Jus’ hands. Those hands - hands that fought and bloodied themselves for him, and that somehow also cradled him close - dropped to Jus’ sides. 

“Where do I stand?” Josh asked, and Vestell pointed to the platform in the middle. He walked forward, under the massive machine that whirled around with so much power, before looking back at Jus.

Vestell quickly initiated the sequence, and the machine started to power up, enveloping him in soft yellow light, unlike the harsh brightness back at the SBT building when he accidentally traveled forward.

He looked back at Jus, who was smiling at him, and Josh was so distracted he didn’t see the door to the chamber open. 

None of them did.

All he heard was the gunshot.

Followed by Romero’s loud evil cackle.

And the last thing he saw before he disappeared into the time stream was Jus dropping to his knees in shock, a bloom of red spreading from his chest. 

* * *

Josh landed on the ground, hitting his head against the metal casing.

He hadn’t realized he had been crying until he felt the wetness down his cheeks. He took a deep shuddering breath, fists clenched as he tried to stand up. 

He glanced around him. He was inside the SBT time machine again, back to where he was taken. It looked exactly as he had left it, which seemed like literal days ago. 

He cautiously glanced outside, wiping his cheeks. It wasn’t time to get emotional now. He had to get out quickly.

A quick glance at the digital clock told him he’d made it back. 2020 flashed in red blocky text, and Josh took a moment to thank Vestell for his genius brain. 

Otherwise, who knew where he’d end up? 

He barely got to step outside when alarm bells started ringing.

“Oh shit,” Josh muttered. Red lights flashed around him, and he could hear footsteps approaching.

“Who’s there?!” Came the gruff voice of security. Josh held his breath, before he stepped out into their line of sight. “Show yourself immediately!”

The footsteps approached, and there was a pause. 

“Engineer Santos?” Came the disbelieving noise. “What are you doing down here? Don’t you know it is against SBT protocol to enter alpha levels without proper authorization? I’m afraid I will have to take you to management.”

Josh chuckled. He’s been through hell and back, been to the future and all, and at this point, there were bigger things at stake. 

“Well, why the hell do I care?” He murmured, shaking his head as he held his hands up. “What the fuck do I have to lose?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone wants to buy premium knives, I'm selling them. I'm ready.


	8. Snap Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The timeline snapped back. What happens now to Jus and everyone else in the future?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay.
> 
> This wasn't the best chapter. I know. I don't even know where I planned to go with this, because this is essentially a resolution already of the past events. I'll explain more in the end notes, but I do hope you enjoy, and if you have any constructive criticism to give me, please do.
> 
> Still, stan SB19!

_ Blood. _

_ There was blood everywhere. It seemed to bloom from his chest, a large stain of red travelling from the gunshot wound, and seeping into the fabric of his standard-issued uniform.  _

_ Wait, gunshot wound? It didn’t hurt, but why was it there? _

_ All of a sudden, the scenery changed, and he found himself in an empty room. White walls surrounded him, and he turned around, trying to get his bearings.  _

_ A voice echoed around his room, and it rang in his ears. It sounded so familiar - like a whisper of someone he once knew - but at the same time, he couldn't quite place it. Still, it didn’t stop him from trying to find the speaker. _

_ Jus turned around, and he gasped at the image before him.  _

**_“Take care of yourself, okay?”_ **

_ Soft, dark brown eyes, tears brimming at the edges, looking straight at him behind thick-rimmed glasses. Plump lips stretched into a bittersweet grin accompanied the mirage, and there was a sense of familiarity with the way he reached out to Jus. _

_ Who was this man? _

_ Just as Jus reached out to touch, the scenery changed again, and he found himself in another room, this one with walls painted black. Jus found himself strapped to a chair, unable to move, and he could only look forward. _

**_“He’s a piece of work, isn’t he?”_ **

_ There was that voice again, echoing around him, and he could feel the vibrations in his very bones. Jus struggled against the binds, but he could barely move. Even turning his head was painful. _

_ Where was this headed? _

_ All of a sudden, the overwhelming emotion of confusion and pain lambasted him. He could feel the pain, the sadness, the betrayal...he was drowning, and he couldn’t even do anything about it.  _

_ Then, the anger - the rage - swept through him, and Jus felt himself being released from his chains, falling to the floor. He saw footsteps walk toward him, and he looked up to see those same dark brown eyes holding a steely gaze, burning with anger unlike he’s ever felt before. _

**_“You lied to me.”_ **

_ Who did he lie to? What did he do?  _

_ Who was this man? _

_ “No- no I…” Jus gasped, but he felt himself immediately silenced.  _

**_“You were just going to keep me in the dark about all of this?”_ **

_ What the hell was he saying? Who did he hurt? Jus tried to scramble up to demand answers, but as quickly as he stood, he was suddenly pushed aside, and the scenario around him changed again. _

_ The room was in shades of red, but it wasn’t pulsating in anger unlike the black room. It was a fiery red, burning like passion and romance, and Jus could feel the lust and want surround him. It wrapped him in a warm embrace, and he could feel himself breathe in and out, gasping for an entirely different reason.  _

**_“It wasn’t the best idea, but that didn’t mean it was a mistake."_ **

_ There was that voice again, this time with a soft tone. Emotions spilled forth, of promises and assurances, of a love that Jus longed to have.  _

_ He could feel soft lips on his, kissing him feverishly. Jus moaned out, relishing the sensations that seemed to drive him mad. Calloused hands roaming around his body, drawing out a soft, guttural moan from his lips. He allowed himself to be lost in the sensations, his sanity barely hanging by a thread. _

_ “Josh,” he heard himself whimper, as if he was made to say the name. Praises sprang forth from his lips as he felt a warm body against his, skin against skin, driving Jus mad with pleasure.  _

_ But, wait. _

_ Who was Josh? _

**_“Am I glad that I met you because of all this.”_ **

_ The feeling of a kiss against the back of his hand, soft and barely there, like a small butterfly landing on his skin. Jus was snapped out of his daze and the room shifted again. The room was no longer the passionate, fiery red, but it was a soft pink. It was almost cotton candy like, exhibiting the sweetness of first love and the affection of a romance.  _

**_“But why are you helping me? I’m nobody.”_ **

_ Clearly not, Jus wanted to scream out, but for the life of him, he could not remember this person. _

**_“Do you think I’ll ever get home?”_ **

_ Home where? And why was he asking Jus for help? _

**_“I feel so better now that you’re here.”_ **

_ Whoever he was, Jus obviously had a very important role in his life. He reached out a hand to the image forming in forefront of his mind, and Jus couldn’t help but study the man closely.  _

_ The images flashed - a man in cuffs - black hair a mess, thick-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. A witty grin on his face for the world to see, and soft dark brown eyes that spoke volumes.  _

_ He looked like someone and no one at all. _

_ It was driving Jus crazy.  _

_ But then, the room changed again, and he was in a void. There was no more room, but Jus was still standing in the middle, the voice speaking to him.  _

_ “I love you.” _

_ “I love you.” _

_ “I love y-” _

_ Gunshot. _

Jus snapped his eyes open as he hastily sat up in his bed. He tried to catch his breath, groaning loudly as he flopped back onto the pillows. 

_ “What the fuck could have possibly woken me up at this hour?”  _ Jus thought to himself as he glanced at the clock that read  **2:46 am** in bold, neon text. The noise sounded eerily close to a gunshot, but it also sounded like a car backfiring outside his apartment. At this point, he couldn’t be fucked to do anything about it.

It was almost three in the goddamn morning, he wasn’t the commander for another seven hours. 

“That was a weird fuckin’ dream,” Jus then muttered to himself as he sat up after five minutes. He felt around his chest. There were no bullet wounds that he could feel, and he wasn’t out in field work in the past few days. He couldn’t have been shot.

Still, what made his dream more weird was the fact that he kept seeing this man he has never seen before in his life. Jus was pretty sure he had never met this person, and he never had the chance to speak to him or anything, but the images that floated around his head made it seem like he was someone very important in his life.

The thing is, why can’t Jus remember him?

Jus rubbed his face, all semblance of sleep leaving him. He pushed the covers off his bed and stood up.

He wasn’t going to get any sleep now, he figured as he pulled on a long-sleeved shirt and got out his running shoes. Maybe a workout would help him clear his head and get him ready to start the day. 

* * *

The man featured in Jus’ head the entire day.

But, they weren’t like glimpses of his dream from earlier. It was like he was seeing through the eyes of someone else, sharing memories with a different person. 

“Commander?”

He shook his head, belatedly realizing he was still in a meeting with the board of directors. They were all looking at him expectantly, as if waiting for an answer.

“I’m sorry, could you repeat that, please?” He asked, leaning forward, an apologetic look on his face. 

“Wonderful, we have a commander who is not even paying attention,” came the scathing remarks of Romero from across the table, and Jus’ eyes narrowed at him.

The rest of the board, thankfully, ignored Romero. “Are you okay, commander?” One of them asked, and a memory flashed before his eyes of him kicking the guy in the face. Jus shook his head, trying to shake the image out of his head, but to no avail.

“Sorry, I’m...I’m not sure what’s wrong with me,” he murmured. He then sat back, leaning his head against the headrest. 

“Are you okay to continue with the meeting, commander?” Another asked, and Jus nodded.

“Yes, yes, I’m okay,” he said, waving off the concern. “It’s just a minor headache, I’ll be okay.”

The board didn’t look entirely convinced, but continued nonetheless with the meeting. Thankfully, Jus was able to concentrate, and no new images flashed through his mind for the rest of the hour. 

* * *

“I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” he told Vestell when the man opened the door. “I keep getting these flashes of images in my mind, and I don’t even know what they’re in relation to. Help me please.”

Vestell blinked. “Wow, okay, a hello would have been nice.”

Jus rolled his eyes. “ _ Hello.  _ There, are you happy?”

“Immensely,” Vestell said with a grin. “Come in, and tell me what’s wrong.”

Jus took a deep breath. “Okay, I have no idea what’s going on first of all. I had this really crazy dream last night, and since then, I’ve been receiving flashes of this...man.”

“Are you sure you’re not just daydreaming?” Vestell asked him with a grin, and Jus shook his head.

“Look, these aren’t just things you can think up on a whim. It’s like…” Jus paused, worrying his lower lip, as if trying to find the right words to say. “It’s like I’m watching the memories of someone else.”

Vestell leaned back, eyebrows furrowed. “That...doesn’t make sense.”

“Well, no shit,” Jus muttered, frustrated. “Look, I can’t explain it. I don’t know if I’m watching the memories of someone else or...if I’m watching my own.”

He then looked up at Vestell. “They’re too realistic...it’s like...I’m watching a different version of myself, of a life that I could have lived.”

“Can you tell me what you’ve been seeing so far?”

Jus nodded. “It’s always different...but there’s one constant. There is this man, and he’s always in every single one of the images I see.”

“Does he look like anyone?” Vestell asked him as Jus was deep in thought. “Maybe you saw him on a poster or something, which is why he features in your dreams.”

“But that wouldn’t explain why I keep  _ seeing _ him,” Jus pointed out. “He doesn’t look like anyone I know…”

“Try and think. Focus on his features, and tell me who’s the closest.” Vestell told him, and Jus fell silent, trying to think.

“I-” he paused, looking around after a few seconds of thinking. “I know this is going to sound crazy, but...he looks like a younger version of the Founder.”

Vestell’s eyes widened at that.

“Wait, are you sure about that?” He asked, and Jus nodded.

“It’s the closest I can think of,” He said, and Vestell fired up his PAUS.

The image of the Founder floated in front of them. The man in the image sported salt and pepper hair, with soft brown eyes behind a pair of thin-rimmed glasses. He looked to be in his 50s, with laugh lines around his eyes and wrinkles on his forehead.

Still, Jus’ eyes widened at the sight. 

“It is him!” He exclaimed, startling Vestell. “He’s a few decades younger in the images I see, but it’s him!”

“But, that doesn’t make sense though,” Vestell pointed out. “If you’re seeing these memories of the Founder...you couldn’t possibly. Not unless you personally saw him.”

“Well, you never know since time might be involved, right?”

Vestell took a sharp intake of breath. “Look, we can’t even be certain that time is involved in all of this.”

“But it’s a possibility?”

Vestell sighed. “I’ll look into it. I’ll let you know if anything comes up.

Jus breathed out a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Vestell.”

* * *

**_“So as you can see, the commander is aiding the time jumper…”_ **

**_“You can explain when you’re behind bars, commander....”_ **

_ Jus could not, for the life of him, understand why Romero’s voice was echoing in his head. Doesn’t he have enough of this imbecile at work? Why does he have to appear in his subconscious as well? _

_ “Come on, Romero, this is between you and me. You don’t have to drag him into whatever it is you’re planning,” Jus found himself saying, the words flowing from his lips almost as if he was meant to say them.  _

**_“You stole what was rightfully mine!”_ **

_ “I worked hard to get to where I am, Romero. I suppose I can’t say the same for you, can I?” _

_ It was like he was watching a scene from another life.  _

_ Romero materialized in front of him, and Jus wished he could have better dreams. _

_ But, Romero materialized with the man from his previous dreams. He had a grip on his collar, and the man looked beaten up and battered. His glasses were askew, hair a mess, and blood was dripping from his lips. _

**_“He’s got you wrapped around his little finger, doesn’t he?”_ **

_ Jus had no idea what possessed him, but he surged forward. All he could think about was saving this man from Romero’s grip. _

**_“Too late, commander.”_ **

_ “No!” Jus yelled, unable to get a grip of the mirage in front of him. Romero’s evil cackle resonated around the room, and Jus could feel his ears bleed at the sound.  _

_ Still, his focus was on the man. Jus pushed forward, trying to reach for him, but there seemed to be something stopping him.  _

_ The man then looked up, bruises on his face, but he still managed to smile at Jus. _

_ “It’s okay,” he whispered, a serene smile on his face. “I welcome death.” _

_ In a horrific twist of events, the man suddenly faded in the background, leaving Jus staring down the barrel of a gun that Romero was holding. _

_ He took the shot. _

* * *

Jus sat up in his bed, taking a deep breath. He felt around his body, sighing when he didn’t feel any wound or blood dripping down his face. Jus held a hand to his beating heart, trying his damned best to calm himself. 

He glanced at the clock, and he let out a frustrated whimper when it read  **3:02 am.**

“Fuck this,” he muttered, getting up from bed and pulling a shirt over his head. In a flash, he was out of his apartment and making his way to Vestell and Keane’s house.

Keane was the one who greeted him at the door, obviously grouchy from having been woken up. “Do you have any idea what time it is?” Keane asked as he let Jus in through the door.

“I know,” he replied with a sigh. “Is Vestell awake?”

Keane raised an eyebrow, and Jus belatedly realized that Keane was just in his boxers, the flimsy cloth low on his hips. Then, he saw the bite marks on Keane’s neck, and understanding dawned on him. Jus shook his head clear and looked back up at Keane.

“Look, I’m sorry I uh...interrupted. I’ll just...let you two continue on.”

“Nah, you already ruined the mood,” Keane muttered. He left Jus in the living room, presumably to go get Vestell.

“Hey, honey, we got a stray again,” He called out, and Jus could hear Vestell’s groan all the way downstairs.

In ten minutes, both Keane and Vestell were downstairs. Keane never bothered covering up, still in his boxers, but Vestell was wrapped in a fluffy robe in an effort to hide the lovebites on his own neck.

“Again, from the top, can you explain the whole thing?” 

And Jus relayed his dream again, down to every detail he could remember. Both Keane and Vestell listened closely, confusion growing on their faces with every second that passed. 

“Okay, but why was Romero there?” Keane asked with a frown. “You need to have your subconscious checked, Jus.”

Jus rolled his eyes. “I don’t fucking know why he was there, but he obviously had something to do with the same man I saw. This can’t have been coincidence, Vestell!”

“There’s a lot of factors, Jus,” Vestell began with a sad smile. “We can never be sure about what happened.”

“Isn’t there an explanation for why I keep getting these flashes of memories like they're from someone else?” Jus asked, frustrated. “Look, I didn’t ask to get these, and I’m not sure why I’m getting them, but there has to be an explanation!”

For once, Vestell was quiet, thinking. 

“Well, there is a theory,” he began a few minutes later as he pulled up his PAUS. “It hasn’t been really proven, though.”

“What is it?”

“Well, remember how I always talk about time moving in the linear fashion? The butterfly effect?”

At Jus’ nod, Vestell continued. “Because of certain time jumps, sometimes, anomalies occur in the timeline. That’s a proven fact. However, there are certain events that even I can’t explain. Some have postulated before that if you bring a person back to the time they left, it could completely undo everything they’ve ever done before they traveled.”

“And what happens to the timeline?” Jus asked.

“Some theorize that it could snap back, as if those events never happened, and everyone involved will get on their merry way,” Vestell then paused, looking through the results. “Others say that such a strain on the timeline could cause realities to intertwine, which might explain why you’re seeing these memories.”

“But that’s not possible,” Keane said, butting in. “There have been no records of illegal time jumps in weeks.”

“That we know of,” Jus added. “If what Vestell is saying has merit, then that jump would have never happened.”

“So why exactly are you the only one affected?” Vestell asked, and Jus shook his head.

“I have no goddamn clue, but I feel like something big happened.”

He paused, looking up at them.

“And I was there to witness all of it.”

* * *

With Romero featuring in his dreams, though, Jus was moved to launch an investigation against him. He spent two straight days poring over Romero’s case files, noting certain anomalies in the investigations and discrepancies in the report.

To his utter surprise, there was evidence of tampering in almost every single case file.

But these were not in Romero’s files.

Jus found them in  _ his. _

“Fuck,” Keane breathed out later after he pored over them. “Someone’s out to get you.”

“Yeah, no shit,” he muttered. 

“You think it could be Romero?” Keane asked, and Jus nodded.

“He’s the only one who’s ever had a stick up his ass whenever I was involved,” he said with a sigh. “Think there’s enough to launch a full blown investigation into him?”

“As the Lieutenant,” Keane began, standing up. “I say let’s take that fucker down.”

* * *

The investigation lasted a total of a week before Romero caught on.

And by then, it was too late.

He denied and fought them at all costs, but Jus was able to produce copies of every single one of his case files, proving to the board that he had done his work down to the letter. A deeper dive traced the modifications back to Romero’s server, and that was enough evidence for the board apparently.

He was stripped of the Captaincy and promptly fired.

“You’re going to pay for this,” he growled at Jus, in front of the  _ goddamn  _ board, before he withdrew a taser from his coat and surged forward.

He was then halted by Keane who unceremoniously tackled him to the ground and knocked him out cold. 

Jus then looked at the board, an eyebrow raised. “I’d like to press charges for attempted assault,” he said, gesturing to Romero lying on the ground. “The taser he brandished could have killed me, considering my biomechanical arm.”

“Of course, commander,” one of the board members said with a sigh. “We’ll get the ball rolling on that.”

* * *

_ The flashes of memories slowly started to fade away, and Jus was grateful he wasn’t being attacked every night by this barrage of images.  _

_ Still, it didn’t mean they were completely gone.  _

_ “I’m glad I met you,” Jus suddenly said, moving closer. “The real you, not the hero that I grew up with. No matter how this ends, I’ll be incredibly happy that I got to know you more. We might not...be lucky enough to stay together, but know that you are one of the best things to ever happen to me.” _

  
  


**_“As are you,”_ ** _ the man replied, bringing up Jus’ hand and kissing his knuckles.  _ **_“Thank you for taking care of me, for making me believe that I can do more and be more than I am. I...I love you.”_ **

_ Jus pressed their lips together, and no matter how many times they kissed, it somehow always was going to feel like the first time. _

_ The man then faded away, and Jus found himself alone. _

_ But he didn’t feel lonely. _

* * *

Jus blinked his eyes open, and he took a deep breath, a smile on his face.

The dream wasn’t as aggressive this time around. For Jus, it felt more like the end of a chapter, and he could finally move on with his life.

Whoever this man was, and why he looked like the Founder, was still going to be a mystery for Jus. Could there have been a time jump that he wasn't aware of, that completely altered his reality, but that he couldn't remember? Possibly. 

Time was always going to be a fickle thing, and it was still going to be the very thing he swore to protect. 

The dreams and flashes of memories were becoming few and far in between, and Jus realized that he didn’t really care anymore about what they meant. He just wanted to move on with his life.

And well, he had an idea of where he might begin.

* * *

“Where are you going?” 

Keane was in full Time Police regalia, but Jus was in his normal clothes, eager to head out. 

“What?” Jus asked defensively. “I can’t go anywhere on my day off?”

Keane narrowed his eyes playfully. “Well, as the new captain, I order you to tell me where you’re headed.”

Jus grinned at him. “You’re taking that captaincy seriously, I see. I do have to remind you that I still outrank you.”

“Damn it,” Keane muttered, but there was a grin on his face. “Man, I never thought I’d actually be offered the position.”

“You were the best candidate of them all,” Jus told him. “You deserve the title, and I know you’ll do great.”

Keane pulled him into a hug, which Jus gladly returned.

“Thanks, man,” Keane murmured, and Jus squeezed him a bit. “Now, go on wherever you’re headed.”

Jus smiled, ducking his head. “I’m just going to see if I can right some wrongs.”

* * *

Jus took a deep breath as he stood outside a small modest house. With every ounce of courage, he pressed the doorbell.

“...yes, I’m talking about the research!” A voice yelled as the door opened, and Jus found himself staring at him.

Soft, silver gray hair glinted in the sunlight, accompanied by expressive hazel eyes. The man was on his PAUS, presumably talking to someone when he looked up and stopped short.

“Uhh,” he muttered, eyes widening at the sight of Jus. 

Jus could do nothing more but shrug and give an uneasy smile.

“I’ll call you back,” the man murmured to his PAUS before hanging up. “Jus,” he greeted. “What are...what are you doing here?”

Jus stepped forward, a hopeful expression on his face. “Hi, Cole. Can I come in? I just wanted to talk.”

He then took a deep breath. “That is if I haven’t lost any chance I have.”

Cole’s eyes softened, and he stepped aside to let Jus in.

“You got a lot of nerve showing up after a year,” he pointed out, crossing his arms. 

Jus chuckled. “Well, I guess a year teaches you a lot.”

“So, what do you want?” Cole asked, cutting straight to the point.

“Well...it’s a long story.”

Cole shrugged. “I have time,” he said, and Jus grinned. 

“Yeah, well, surprisingly, so do I.”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, so this ends the story of the people from 3020.
> 
> As you can all see, the timeline snapped back. But, with the timeline suddenly snapping back, as Vestell explained, their realities seemed to coalesce, and it was not clear which were Jus' real memories, and which were the memories of the Jus from the alternate reality. And, because Jus was in the middle of it all, he was the one that kept getting those flashes.
> 
> Now, who the fuck is Cole I'm sure you're asking. Three guesses! 
> 
> I just didn't want this to end without Jus having something that resembled the start of a happy ending. He's been through hell and back already, so I kind of wanted to give him something good in his life. Cole is his ex, a scientist that I mentioned somewhere back in the first few chapters. 
> 
> Lastly, Romero. I said I had plans for him, and I did. What was the one thing he valued? His captaincy - so yes, he was stripped of that. It was revealed that he had a huge stick up his ass for Jus, so when he tried to attack him in broad daylight, Jus wasted no time in pressing charges.
> 
> Look, I did my best. I'm not very happy with how this turned out, but this really ends the story of the people from the future. I've really struggled with this story a lot because it's sci-fi, and I could take some liberties with it, but I just hope I could give everyone a satisfying ending.
> 
> Well, at least Jus isn't dead. That's gotta count for something.
> 
> Anyways, I still hope you like this. There's just one more chapter after this, and chapter 10 is the epilogue.
> 
> So, thank you for sticking with me thus far, and I'll do my best to make the ending a satisfying one.
> 
> Cheers,  
> Midnight.


	9. Breathe anew

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josh is back in his time. He's got a lot of work to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHHHHHH
> 
> Disclaimer: First and foremost, I am not a lawyer, and I don't work in any facet of the legal system. Everything here is purely made up, hence FICTION, so please I ask you to suspend your disbelief for a moment.
> 
> This chapter I was oddly excited for, and as I wrote it, things fell into place. I'm sure there are some points that I could polish further, but as I keep saying, constructive criticism is always welcome. 
> 
> and STAN SB19!

_ “What the fuck do I have to lose?” _

The events of the past week were still fresh in Josh’s mind, culminating with the sight of Commander Jus’ bloody figure as he fell to his knees. As he walked through the halls of the SBT building, with a security guard quite literally prodding him along, he took the time to reflect on what he knew.

  * **Time Travel is dangerous and shouldn’t be messed with.**



The alpha level engineers at SBT were working on an actual time machine. It worked, but what did they want to do with it? It can’t possibly have received that much funding from their benefactors unless it would actually do something for them. 

Josh remembers their plans. He recalls all the mechanical details of the blueprints and how to make the machine work.

What they didn’t factor in, though, is just how dangerous their plans were. Not a single one of them thought of the consequences - consequences that Josh himself has lived through.

  * **He was the “Founder” of a future that he experienced**



Josh had absolutely no idea of what it meant aside from the fact that he quite literally helped build their future. How he did it, he had no idea, but he didn’t want to destroy the future by attempting to do something he didn’t know. It would perhaps be best to just let things unfold, and make decisions based on what he knows at present, and not what he knows could become of the future.

  * **The timeline may have possibly snapped back**



If Vestell was correct with his research, then things in the future should have gone back to normal. He could only hope so.

Especially with Jus.

He shook his head clear, not wanting his “death” to be the last thing he remembers from the future. He wants to remember the kisses they shared, the moments between himself and Jus that he could quite literally feel on his skin as if they happened only seconds ago.

They suddenly stopped, and Josh realized they were now outside the office of the CEO of the company.

“Boss, I have Engineer Santos here for you,” the guard said.

“Bring him in.”

Josh then found himself face to face with the SBT Company CEO himself, Christopher Jung. Mr. Jung was a ruthless businessman with a brilliant mind - there was no doubt about that - but with the technology they’re working on at alpha level, Josh had half a mind to rethink his previous views on Mr. Jung.

“Engineer Santos,” the CEO began, crossing his arms on the desk. “Would you care to tell me why you were down at the alpha labs without the proper authorization?”

“Thought I’d see how the other side lives for once,” came his snarky response, leaning back against the chair. “I mean, we Beta engineers rarely get a chance to peek in the alpha labs. Just wanted to know what you were all working on that was so damn important it had to be done in complete secrecy.”

Mr. Jung chuckled. “I think you already know what we’re working on, Engr. Santos. With a brilliant mind like yours, I’m sure you would have already pieced two and two together.”

He then leaned forward, an interested gleam in his eye. “What I want to know, Engineer, is this: did it work?”

Did it work? Of course it bloody worked. The events of the past few days - or seconds, in his case - were still fresh in Josh’s mind. 

The sight of Jus dropping to his knees in shock, with blood everywhere, was still branded in his subconscious, fresh and hot, ready to be replayed over and over again.

It worked, and it worked better than they could have ever imagined. 

But, if his short venture into the future taught Josh anything, it was this: time was not to be messed with. He would not dare fiddle with something that could undo history itself. 

And that’s just exactly what the alpha-level engineers were doing.

“Well? Did the time machine work, Engr. Santos?” Mr. Jung asked again, impatience in his very tone. “I don’t have the time for your insolence.”

“Funny,” Josh remarked with a huff. “I have all the time in the world.”

Mr. Jung’s eyes narrowed. “Are you going to give me a straight answer?”

Josh shrugged. He didn’t care about his job anymore at this point. SBT could fuck off for all he cared, and he would carve his own path himself. He didn’t need them.

“Depends. Let’s say it did,” he began, and Mr. Jung’s eyes suddenly took on that interested gleam again. “Let’s say the time machine did work, and I lived an entire week at a different point in time. What are you going to do with that information?”

There was a very terrifying smirk on Mr. Jung’s face that Josh did not like seeing. 

“Engr. Santos, you have always been so close minded,” came the response, and Josh would take offense to that if he wasn’t playing the long game. “We’d bring you on board the project, of course. You’ll finally become a member of the alpha group of engineers, selected to work on the most sensitive of projects.”

Mr. Jung then stood up and proceeded to sit on the table in front of Josh.

“Imagine what we could do with the technology. We could go back to key points in history and undo all the damage that they have caused. World War I would not need to happen, for example. We could save countless lives, and build our future the way it was supposed to be built,” he said, a very sinister gleam in his eyes. “We can take control of our destiny, and shape it the way we want to.”

“So, what you’re saying is you want to play god with the lives of billions of people,” Josh pointed out, raising an eyebrow. “Have you thought about the domino effect that this could bring about? You’re talking about undoing major events in history - events that helped shape the very fabric of society that we know today - and you don’t even know how that could affect our present.”

“It’s inconsequential, Engr. Santos,” came the dismissive response. “We’d be recognized for the good work that we’ll do, and people all around the world will laud our names.”

“If they even remember it,” Josh added, causing Mr. Jung to frown at him. “The people you’re talking about right now would not even remember what happened if you erase the event from history. Every small action we do now can shape the future in ways we can’t even comprehend. Even if the time machine worked, you’re talking about changing the lives of billions, and we don’t even know how undoing things can affect them. What if World War I does not happen, but a bigger, more devastating war, does? What then?”

“Then we just keep going back, until the future is ideal,” Mr. Jung replied, as if the solution was that easy.

Josh sat back, crossing his arms and leveling a glare at Mr. Jung. “So it’s basically try and try again until we get it right?”

“Quite so, Engr. Santos,” Mr. Jung pointed out. “We have time in our hands, and we can shape it to our liking.”

Josh scowled, not liking the sound of anything that came out of Mr, Jung’s mouth. “Well, in that case then, sadly, the time jump didn’t work. It simply took me back a few seconds.”

It was a bald-faced lie, and Josh knew it, but he couldn’t let these people know what he knew. If they knew he saw the future a thousand years from now, they would want to prod and poke at him and maybe even attempt the jump for themselves.

Or, worst case scenario, they attempt to test all kinds of jumps with Josh, and he doesn’t know if he can handle the mental strain that would accompany that. 

“Is that so, Engr. Santos?” Mr. Jung asked. “You could do amazing things with this technology. Imagine what you can achieve by working with us on this. All we need is your cooperation, and any information you can give us.”

“Well, I’m not too onboard with your little science project, so you can count me out,” Josh said, standing up. “And, if it’s alright with you, Mr. Jung, I’m tendering my resignation, effective immediately.” 

Mr. Jung blinked in surprise, but then, he schooled his mask back into place.

“Very well, Engr. Santos. I accept your resignation, and if you don’t mind, I would like you to sign an NDA before you go. You have to understand, what we’re working on is very sensitive, and we would not want the information going into the wrong hands,” said Mr. Jung. 

Josh nodded. As soon as he received the NDA, he’ll pore over every single point. He needed to find a way to put a halt to the project as soon as possible until they can fully study the implications of it.

“Thank you,” Josh said with a nod. “If you’ll excuse me, Mr. Jung, I’ll be packing my stuff now.”

He then turned and walked out of Mr. Jung’s office, aware that the CEO was watching his every move.

* * *

He told Sejun everything.

And by everything, he meant  _ everything.  _ He could trust Sejun with his  _ life,  _ so he knew he could trust Sejun with this.

“Wow,” Sejun breathed out once he told the whole story. “So you did go to 3020?”

“I did,” Josh said. “God, Sejun, it was unlike anything I had ever imagined it to be. It went beyond even my wildest expectations.”

“I can’t even imagine,” Sejun said, sitting back against the couch of their shared apartment. “Look, I’m sorry, but this is just all too much to take in right now.”

“I understand. I just...I needed to tell someone. I couldn’t go to a therapist - they might just take this as a sign that I was not doing well mentally and admit me to a psych ward,” Josh replied, running fingers through his hair.

“Why didn’t you say it worked when Mr. Jung asked?” Sejun asked him a few minutes later. 

Josh shook his head. “The things he was planning to do with it, Sejun, were not very good plans. We don’t know the full extent of the damage this could cause, and they’re playing with fire at the moment. I need to put a stop to the project.”

“But why should you? I mean, with the way he was describing things, it sounded like it could benefit us.”

Josh sighed, and turned to Sejun. “We don’t know how our actions can change the future. Even deciding on what to eat can have big consequences in our future, and in the lives of those around us. What they’re planning to do, while it sounds good in theory, could make even more drastic changes. The future's not set in stone. It is not pre-determined by any one person, and attempting to do so is already playing god.”

Sejun nodded in understanding. “Look, I get it. So, you want to study this further before even attempting another jump?”

The thought of doing another jump never even crossed his mind. While he could go back to the future and live out the rest of his life with Jus, he was needed here. 

And, well, what if Jus wouldn’t even be there anymore?

He couldn’t afford to do anymore damage.

“I want to study this further, so I could know how to best protect the timeline,” Josh said. “The research itself is going to take years, so I could only hope that I can even attempt something like this in my lifetime.”

“Well, in that case, I’m with you every step of the way,” Sejun said, placing his hands on Josh’s shoulders. “You can count on me.”

“Thanks, Sej,” Josh said with a grin. “Now, I just need a plan.”

Sejun grinned at him. “Luckily for you, I’m excellent with planning.”

* * *

The NDA itself that the company asked him to sign wasn’t very complex, but it was almost ironclad. Josh read through each dot point thoroughly - up to five times - trying to find a crack he can exploit.

Keeping his face impassive so as not to give away anything to Mr. Jung, he finally signed the NDA after almost an hour and half of poring through it, and handed it over.

“It was a pleasure to have you on board, Engr. Santos,” Mr. Jung said. “We’re sad to see you go.”

Josh nodded. “It was nice working with you too.”

“I don’t suppose you have any plans?”

Josh grinned at him. “Oh, I have plenty.”

* * *

“Brilliant!” Sejun exclaimed when Josh told him about it later as they were walking out of the SBT building with Josh’s things. “So, you can’t expose any information about the project itself to competitors or build one on your own…”

“...but it didn’t say I couldn’t blow the whistle and just send investigators in their general direction,” Josh continued with a grin. “All I have to do is build a strong case without mentioning anything about the thing they’re working on downstairs, and just anonymously send it through. They might send me to court, but I’ll have an ironclad alibi, and I’ll look into getting a lawyer to drive point the fact that I didn’t break my NDA.”

“You have to be careful though,” Sejun pointed out once they loaded Josh’s car with his boxes of stuff. “They might still be watching your every move.”

“Then let them watch,” Josh said with a grin. “In fact, I wait for them to make a move. I’ll just go about my merry way, and they won’t even know what hit them.”

When he closed the trunk, he turned back to Sejun.

“What about you?” He asked his friend. “Are you staying here?”

Sejun looked back at the SBT building. “For now, yes,” he replied a few seconds later. “You’ll have eyes on the inside, and besides, I’m not yet halfway done with my project.”

“Oh yeah, what was that project about again?” Josh asked, a genuine curiosity in his tone. Sejun’s eyes brightened at the chance of getting to explain his project.

“Well, actually, it’s kind of like a search engine that only you can use. But programming the thing is a bitch, and I need all the resources I can get at this point,” Sejun said with a sigh. “I plan to call it the Personal Search Engine, or PSE.”

Josh nodded with a smile, the puzzle pieces falling into place for him. He knew where this was going, and Sejun looked incredibly excited at the prospect.

He chuckled. "That sounds good, but maybe we can workshop the name a little better.”

Sejun laughed. “Yeah, it’s not the most appealing to listen to.”

He then stepped forward and wrapped Josh in a hug. “Listen, you take care alright? I’ll do what I can here and keep an eye out, but they’ll be after you if you decide to become a whistle-blower in all this.”

“Well, I’d like to see them try.”

* * *

It took a week of careful planning, and Josh was ready to set things into motion. 

He sent an anonymous tip to the relevant stakeholders, hoping that someone there would actually take notice. 

In addition, he found out through some careful digging with Sejun's help that SBT was also using government money to fund their project. The catch? They had to keep the relevant stakeholders informed about anything and everything they did. Not only did Josh figure out that they withheld that information, they were actually working with foreign investors as well without the knowledge of their recognized benefactors.

This was going to hit them hard in the ass.

And they couldn’t pin Josh on it, because, technically, he didn’t break his NDA.

He didn’t mention anything about the project or its details to any competitors.

He didn’t say that they were working on something dangerous in the building.

All he did was package his report as a concerned ex-employee of SBT, wanting to make sure that his former employer was still going to uphold his benefits like his separation pay.

He then armed himself with a lawyer - Stellvester “Stell” Ajero, his name was - and got ready for war.

* * *

“We have a strong defense,” Stell told him days later. “They’re working with illegal contractors. And while we’re not sure what they want, this is a bigger issue than you allegedly breaking an NDA.”

Josh nodded. “As long as I can put a stop to what they’re doing, I don’t really care what happens to me.”

Stell looked up at him, and he looked so eerily similar to Vestell that Josh had, on a few occasions, nearly called him by that name.

“You’re going to a legal battle with a multi-million dollar tech company,” Stell pointed out. “I’d be a little worried for your safety.”

“You think I should get a security detail?” Josh asked him.

“Well, maybe not that far, but at least watch your back. We don’t know if they’ll resort to drastic measures to ensure your silence.”

A sudden knock on his door startled Josh slightly, but he spared one look at Stell before peeking through the peephole, sighing in relief, and opening the door to let Sejun in.

“Okay, looks like SBT’s been doing a lot more shady shit than we realized,” Sejun was saying as he pushed a stack of folders into Josh’s arms. “They’re even dealing under the table, all signed off by Mr. Jung and - “

Sejun suddenly stopped blabbering, and Josh looked up from the folders to see that Sejun had spotted Stell who was seated at the dining room table, reading through several copies of evidence that Josh had already provided him.

“Uh, who’s that?” Sejun asked, and Josh raised an amused eyebrow.

“That’s Stell, my lawyer,” he said, pushing Sejun forward. Stell caught sight of them, and he sent a smile towards Sejun.

“Stell, this is my best friend, Sejun. He’s worked at SBT for as long as I have, and he’s got more incriminating evidence for us,” Josh said as Sejun sat down in front of Stell and shook his hand.

“Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” Stell said, and Josh noticed the very slight tinge of pink on Sejun’s cheeks.

“Nice to meet you too,” he replied.

“Well then,” Josh cleared his throat, breaking the eye contact between the two. “What’s new with SBT, Sej?”

* * *

The investigation was now underway, and Josh knew about it because it was all over the news.

Investigators wasted no time in issuing a cease and desist with SBT’s operations until the investigation was over. Stell maneuvered matters in a way that they didn’t even go to court. The tons of evidence they gathered that painted SBT in a different light - under the table dealings, unknown foreign contracts, and anonymous benefactors - was more than enough to get the large tech company to stop their major operations.

Mr. Jung was arrested on criminal charges, and so were several members of the board.

And, since Josh didn’t really break his NDA, no one could prosecute him on those grounds.

He was free.

He breathed a sigh of relief. At least the operations on the time machine were over.

But, he had to move fast. He couldn’t let that technology move into the wrong hands. 

With the vacuum created by the lack of a CEO, an interim CEO was appointed. 

Josh needed to act fast.

Time was, ironically, running out. 

* * *

There were a lot of officers and investigators swarming the SBT building when Josh arrived the next day, and Sejun greeted him by the receptionist.

“Do you know what you’re going to say?” Sejun asked him as he made his way towards the interim CEO’s office. The interim CEO was the former VP of external affairs, Ms. Hannah Kim, and Josh knew her to be fairly unbiased when it came to running a business.

“Yes, how can I help you?” She asked when Josh entered her office, and Josh took a deep breath.

“Miss Kim, my name is Josh Cullen Santos,” he greeted her. “I was a former engineer that worked here at SBT, and I have some information that I need to give you. Lives are literally at stake here.”

At the last sentence, Ms. Kim’s eyes widened, and she gestured for Josh to take a seat.

“Okay, so in alpha level labs, there’s a machine…”

* * *

Sejun was still outside by the time Josh was done talking to Ms. Kim. By then, Josh was grinning ear to ear, and Sejun stared at him like he grew a second head.

“What happened?” Sejun asked him.

“Well, Ms. Kim agreed to put a halt to any major projects alpha level is working on until such a time they are properly investigated and approved by her. And, since she doesn’t have an engineering background, guess who she asked to investigate each project?” Josh asked with a grin, and Sejun’s eyes widened.

“What the - you?!” He asked incredulously, and Josh nodded.

Sejun stared at him. “Wait, so let me get this straight, you got promoted?”

“No, I got hired, it’s a different thing,” Josh pointed out. “And besides, it’s time we do things differently around here. Ms. Kim will focus on running the business, and I get to head research and development.”

Sejun gaped at him, and Josh didn’t know whether he was in awe or just struck dumb from how events turned out.

“So, you free to hang tonight?” Josh asked once Sejun finally managed to scrape his jaw off the floor. “Let’s celebrate my new job!”

Sejun shook his head, laughing as he slung an arm around his shoulder. “You’re an ass.”

“But you love me!”

“Don’t push your luck.”

They celebrated the night with drinks, and Sejun announced that he and Stell were also officially dating.

Josh congratulated them both with a toast.

“A toast, to the future.”

* * *

Josh arrived at SBT, bright and early on Monday morning, ready to start his week as the head of R&D.

“You look like an ass,” Sejun told him when he walked in wearing a suit and tie, and Josh laughed.

“Hey, I gotta look the part at least,” he pointed out as they walked together to grab coffee.

Sejun shook his head. “Man, I can’t believe the events of the last week,” he breathed out. “We got some big names arrested, nearly ran a multi-million dollar tech company to the ground, and somehow, in the midst of it all, you not only made it past alpha level, but you became head of R&D.”

“It was a helluva week,” Josh agreed as he poured himself some coffee. Well, for him it was two.

He looked around. SBT was still going to run for a few more years or so - maybe even decades - and by then, Josh could only hope that he was still there to make sure things were running smoothly.

He had so many ideas in his head - ideas that he wanted to get started on as soon as possible - to hopefully create the future that he saw.

Memories of that time were almost becoming a thing of his past, and Josh looked ahead to a bright future where he could carefully study time travel and make sure that nobody used it for nefarious deeds.

And maybe even work on some of his projects in his time. 

“One step at a time,” he murmured low under his breath.

“Sorry, what was that?” Sejun asked him.

Josh shook his head. “Nothing, I just...I figured I’ll take this one step at a time. I mean, we never will know what tomorrow will bring.”

He then turned to Sejun with a grin on his face. “But one thing’s for sure, we can work together to make the future bright.”

Sejun grinned at him. “That we can.”

* * *

“Excuse me, is this the R&D department?” A small voice asked, and Josh turned around.

His mouth went dry at the sight.

In front of him stood a younger looking man. He sported chestnut brown hair that swept to the sides. He wasn’t very tall - maybe about 5’8” or so - and he looked incredibly out of place in the chaotic lab they were in.

But what was so achingly familiar were his eyes.

One was brown.

The other was a shade of blue.

“You have really pretty eyes,” Josh suddenly found himself saying before he could stop himself, and by then, it was too late. The words were out of his mouth, causing the younger boy to stop and stare.

“I - uh...thanks I guess?” He replied, a sheepish smile on his face that was so eerily familiar to Josh that it caused his heart to twinge slightly. “It’s a genetic mutation they said - heterochromia. I’ve always had it since I was young.”

“Wow, I...that’s new information to me,” Josh replied, sounding genuinely surprised. He then shook his head clear. “But, yes, to answer your earlier question, this is the R&D department, and I’m the department head, Josh Cullen Santos.”

He stuck out a hand, and the younger boy shook it, smile increasing with every second.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Santos.”

“Please, call me Josh,” Josh told him, and the younger boy nodded.

“I’m the new researcher,” he replied with a smile. “HR just sent me straight here after my final interview.”

“And what’s your name?” Josh asked, and the boy shook his head.

“Oh shoot, I knew I was forgetting something. My name is Justin de Dios.” Came the reply, and Josh grinned.

“Well, Justin, it’s very nice to meet you. What say I take you on a tour of the department?”

Justin smiled, sweetly and beautifully, and nodded. “I’d love that.”

“Well then,” Josh said, holding out his hand. “Let’s go.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHH KILIG.


	10. Epilogue

**Year 3014, six years before the Engineer’s venture into the future**

_ Some have asked me, “Dr. Santos, why have you decided to go into studying quantum mechanics?”  _

_ As an engineer, a man of science, I felt it was my duty to explore deeper into the universe. It was my goal to expand human knowledge, to know how things work around us, and to see if it was possible for us to push the limits of what humanity is capable of. _

_ Experience has taught me quite a bit. It has taught me that I should ask questions. It has taught me to experiment. Experience has taught me to dive deep into ideas that no other scientist of my calibre would dare venture into. This is my encouragement for all future scientists out there. Make your mark in the world. Make it a better place. Use your knowledge to figure out how things work and make it better. _

_ I know for sure that, one day, you will make a difference.  _

“You seem to have been up all night reading,” a voice sounded, and Vestell looked up to see Keane walk into the room, carrying a cup of coffee. He rubbed his face, and gratefully took the cup from him.

“Thank you,” he murmured, putting the book down. Keane sat next to him, fiddling with his fingers, and he regarded him carefully. “What are you doing here? I thought you said you’d be keeping watch over your friend.”

“I know, I know, but...Jus is asleep right now. Whatever meds you gave him just conked him out, and his vitals have been stable since the operation,” Keane explained. “So I figured what’s the harm in taking a stroll and well, maybe meet up with the cute scientist that has helped him through this?”

Vestell couldn’t help the blush on his face, and Keane smiled at him.

“So, what have you been reading?” Keane asked, and Vestell showed him the cover of the book.

“It’s one of Dr. Santos’ best works,” Vestell said with a shy smile. “I’m a huge fan of his work. He’s done so much for the scientific field even with the limitations of his time and…” 

He trailed off, ending his sentence with a shrug. “I’m sure you wouldn’t want me to bore you to death with this.”

To his surprise, Keane took his hand, causing Vestell to look up at him in surprise. 

“No, please...stay,” Keane said. “I...I want to know more. Tell me more about his work.”

Vestell let out a smile. “Well then, why don’t we go for some more coffee, then?”

Keane grinned. “I’d like the sound of that.”

As they made their way to a nearby coffee shop, Keane turned to Vestell, a question in his eyes. “So, uh, Dr. Santos....he’s an engineer right? Did he really do all that work that his books said he did?”

“Oh, he did all of that and more,” Vestell replied, taking a bite from his cinnamon roll. “Dr. Santos shaped our future. Man, I just wish I got to meet him you know. I just wish I could go back to the past and just...pick at his brain.”

“Or, who knows, he might come to the future and you’ll get to meet him.” Keane pointed out with a grin, and Vestell chuckled.

“I can only wish,” he replied after a while with a sigh. “But, a scientist can dream.”

Keane grinned at him. “Listen, I’m sure you’ll do great things too. Like what you did for Jus, attaching a new arm for him...that’s an amazing thing, and I really just want to thank you so much for what you’ve done.”

“Well, it was the right thing to do,” Vestell said, ducking his head at the praise.

Keane took a deep breath before he looked back at Vestell. “Hey, listen, if you’re not doing anything tomorrow night...would you like to have dinner with me?”

Vestell couldn’t help the smile that stretched his lips. “You know what? I’d love to.” 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to take this opportunity to thank a few people that have helped me as I wrote this monstrosity of a fic.
> 
> To Kev, Trish, Sai, and Shi - you guys are the best. You kept me sane as I ploughed through this project, and I couldn't have done it without you. The late night Discord sessions, constant chats on Telegram, and just getting to talk to you guys really motivated me. All of your feedback, your comments, even the knives that you threatened to stab me with really helped a lot, and I'm super super super grateful for you guys. I love you all <3
> 
> To r4m3nlvr, every comment you give on each chapter really helped me keep the story moving forward. Everytime I updated, I looked forward to your comments. You gave so much detailed feedback, and you have no idea how much I appreciated that you took the time to read my work and help me improve in my writing. You are an amazing writer, and I'm super glad that I met you even in this virtual world of AO3 or Twitter.
> 
> To the rest of the Unholy Fam, thank you for always looking forward to my updates. I hope I met your expectations with this fic which I started in May for the 7th Double J monthsary. It's now 5 months later, and we have been through a lot, but I couldn't imagine doing this without all of your support. Thank you, and I hope you all enjoyed what I wrote.
> 
> To every reader that has left a Kudos or left a comment, I'm so sorry I can't get to all of you, but just know that I really really appreciate all of you.
> 
> To SB19, for being such an inspirational group. You motivated me to write again, to unleash my creativity, and even if I know for a fact you might not have read this, I just want to thank you for existing. 
> 
> And lastly, my muses, Josh and Justin...your closeness made me excited to write again. I love the both of you so much, and I love your relationship so much. You two deserve each other, even if it's just as platonic friends. You believed in each other, and I know for a fact even if you two were separated by time or even circumstances, you'd still find your way towards each other.
> 
> Thank you again, everyone! This is Midnight, signing off.


End file.
